Bleach: Parallel Futures
by BlackShenlong
Summary: In the wake of Ichigo's victory against Ulquiorra, Aizen grants the Soul Society 30 days before he begins his assault. But not all is quiet during this grace period. A new enemy emerges, and he's set his sights on Ichigo.
1. Chapter 1

Ichigo gave a loud yawn as he slumped forward in his chair and laid his head down on his desk. "Excuse me, Ichigo," his teacher, Ochi-sensei, called from the front of the classroom. "You need to stay awake in my class!"

"I'm up, I'm up," he said lazily, waving a hand dismissively but not lifting his head from the desk.

"Ichigo…" his teacher said again, the clemency in her voice fading.

This time, Ichigo said nothing. Orihime frowned worriedly at her desk. Chad and Uryu sighed to themselves.

"Ichigo! Wake up!" Ochi-sensei yelled. Ichigo slammed his palms on his desk as he stood up.

"I'm not dealing with this crap today!" he shouted back as he quickly exited the classroom.

"He's been acting so strange, lately," Ochi-sensei said with a huff as she resumed teaching. Uryu, Orihime, and Chad all exchanged a quick glance. _What's going on, Ichigo? _

Aizen had granted them all a grace period of sorts. _30 days, _he had told them all in Las Noches. _I will allot you 30 days to gather your forces. Then I will attack. _This announcement had come just as Ichigo had defeated Ulquiorra, and they had expected Aizen to invade Karakura Town. Head Captain Yamamoto had decided that Ichigo and his friends should go back to Karakura Town and resume their normal lives until the battle began, and that the Gotei 13 would train and prepare for the upcoming war. Ichigo had insisted that it would be better if they all trained together, but the Head Captain had been most insistent. _Savor these few weeks of normalcy, Kurosaki, for they may be the last in a while. _Even so, since they had returned to the world of the living about a week ago, Ichigo had been unable to focus in school or really on anything else. His main concern was of himself and his own powers. In the battle with Ulquiorra, he had experience an all new Hollowfication, and it had scared him. _I lost control back there… _he thought to himself as he sat on the roof of the school. It was a clear day out, with only a few thin wisps of cloud in the sky. _I almost killed Uryu…_ He stared at his hands, which were trembling slightly. He shut his eyes tight and held his head with his hands. _Dammit, what's wrong with me?_

* * *

2 A.M. Karakura Town was still. With no late-night Hollow alerts, Uryu, Orihime, and Chad were catching up on some much needed sleep. However, Ichigo lies wide awake in bed, thinking still on his strange new transformation. High in the sky, a Garganta opens silently and unnoticed. A man with spiky black hair wearing a black suit and tie and a strange mask steps out, accompanied by a bald man wearing a white jacket with a high collar and white hakama. "Is this it?" the bald man spoke in a deep voice. His face was covered in piercings; he had 6 small spikes jutting from the bottom of his lip, and a ring going through the middle of his bottom lip. He had a large septum ring, as well as a bar going through the base of his bridge and two studs at the top. His gaunt face had sunken cheeks, and both were pierced with spikes. Both of his eyebrows had been cut into three squares each, and in between each square was a stud, totaling 4 in all. He also had a ring on the outside of his right eyebrow. He also had studs on the outside of both of his bright orange eyes, and in each ear he had just about all the types of piercings you could imagine, including large hollow plugs and industrial barbells.

"Yes. This is the place," This man's voice was distorted as though he spoke through a broken microphone. "This is the Karakura Town we're looking for."

The bald man did not seem impressed. "Then I guess the _Gran Garganta _was successful." The bald man had long black striped under each eye, and when he opened his mouth the line of studs on his tongue that seemed to go from the tip down his throat were visible. "So now we make our move."

"No," the black haired man said. "You assemble the others and wait for my command. "

The bald man glanced over at his companion. "And what will you do?"

"I have to meet with an old friend."

The bald man turned and walked back into the Garganta. "Very well," he said as the portal began to close. "We shall await further instruction… _Lord Mu_…"

* * *

Hey guys, BlackShenlong here. Pretty short entry in the beginning, I know. Things always start slow for me, I guess. This was really just an introductory chapter to introduce the time this is set and to (somewhat) begin to set up the conflict. Hope you enjoyed it. I will try to update this story at least once a week, if not more.


	2. Chapter 2

The crescent moon of Hueco Mundo hung in the dark night sky, an eternally watchful eye watching over the denizens of the desert world. The bald man stood alone gazing at the moon, thinking to himself. The faint moonlight reflected off his pale grey skin, and his earrings rustled in the light breeze. He could feel their reitsu before he even saw them. _Only the two of them, then…_

"Where are the others?" he said as two others appeared before him.

"The Shinigami didn't want t' be bothered comin' all the way out here, apparently," the taller of the two said gruffly. She was a tallish and built teenage girl with short green messy hair that gave her a tomboyish look. She had a large white necklace that resembled a shark's jawbone resting on her collarbone, a small white dorsal fin-like protrusion on the top of her head, and she had markings on her neck that looked like gills. She wore a white tank-top that cut off just below her chest so that her whole midsection was revealed. There was a large hole in her stomach where her bellybutton would normally be.

"Typical," the bald man said in his deep voice. "I'll just have to deliver this message twice then. It's time for us to mobilize. The three of us are to move in and place ourselves throughout the city once Lord Mu gives the signal. From there, we are to scout out and locate our targets of interest."

"Targets of incest?" the little one said, and then she giggled. She was wearing a long white robe that was much too big for her, so her hands and feet were both obscured. She had long curly purple hair that went down her back. On her face, she had three small star tattoos trailing under her left eye, with each star from her eye smaller than the last. On her head she wore a small white biretta, but instead of a tuft at the top there was a cracked star with the top and upper left points broken off. She looked to be no older than 10, and she spoke in a childish voice.

"Knock it off, idiot. This is serious," the taller girl said, punching her smaller companion in the head.

"Ow!" the little one yelled. "Bully! Bully!"

"Both of you, quiet," the bald man growled. The two girls were instantly silent.

"I still don't know who we're talking about…" the little girl said with a sniffle.

"Pay more attention, idiot," the tall one said. The little girl stuck her tongue out and slapped the taller girl.

The bald man ignored them. "We are looking for Uryu Ishida, Orihime Inoue, Yasutora Sado, Renji Abarai, and Rukia Kuchiki," he said, folding his arms behind his back. "The latter two are currently stationed back in the Soul Society, but it is likely that they will be sent to Karakura Town once we release our reiryoku. The Gotei 13 takes no chances with arrancar activity due to their present situation. "

"What about Ichigo Kurosaki?" the taller one asked. She grinned, revealing pointed teeth. "If he's as strong as they say, I wouldn't mind crunchin' his bones t' dust."

"You're always so greedy!" the little one said with a laugh.

"Lord Mu has specifically ordered us to leave Ichigo Kurosaki to him," the bald man said. "We are simply to follow orders."

The taller girl sighed loudly and sat down cross-legged in the sand. "So now we wait, then?"

The bald man closed his eyes. "We wait."


	3. Chapter 3

"You can't help me?!" Ichigo shouted at Shinji. The two of them were at the Visored complex, along with Hiyori, Hachigen, and Lisa.

"Sorry, Ichigo," Shinji said, "but there really isn't much more we can do for you…"

"What do you mean? I left in the middle of training…"

"Yeah, but if I'm honest you basically mastered everything we could have taught you by now." Shinji gave a weak smile as he placed a hand on Ichigo's shoulder. "It's up to you, now."

"What the hell is this?" Ichigo shrugged off the hand and grabbed Shinji by the collar of his shirt. "Something's wrong with my powers. I thought I had them under control, but after…" he trailed off.

"Listen, Ichigo," Hacchi began, but Shinji put up a hand. "Ichigo, I get that you're worried, and I wish I could help, but-"

"Then help me! Help me control my inner Hollow!" Ichigo had begun the conversation demanding, but now he was just pleading with them. "I can barely activate my mask anymore, and even if I could I don't even know if I could keep myself in control!"

"Ichigo, this is beyond us now," Shinji said, staring the young man in the eyes. "This is something you have to do alone."

Ichigo punched him square in the jaw. Shinji fell to the ground, and Lisa and Hacchi ran to help him up. Hiyori jumped in between the two of them. "What is wrong with you?!" Hiyori yelled, glaring at Ichigo.

Ichigo matched her stare. "No, what's wrong with you people? I thought you were people I could depend on, people I could trust. But I guess I was wrong…"

Shinji was getting to his feet. "Ichigo, wait…"

"S_crew you!_ You come to me wanting to use me and my powers to further your stupid group, but once you realized I wasn't gonna be a cooperative member you've got no time for me anymore. I get it!" Ichigo turned and walked out the door, slamming it shut behind him.

"Damn him!" Hiyori said, turning to Shinji.

Shinji just shook his head, sadness in his eyes. "No. Damn us for being so useless." _Ichigo, please forgive me… This is a battle you have to fight alone._

* * *

Uryu, Chad, and Orihime all sat together outside during the lunch period. It was a cool, pleasant day outside but even the weather couldn't penetrate the dark mood floating over the group. Ichigo hadn't come to school since his outburst the day before. "I'm really worried about Ichigo," Orihime said. She hadn't touched any of her lunch.

"Me too," Chad said. "What's going on with him?"

There was a brief silence. "It must have to do with his recent Hollowfication against Ulquiorra," Uryu finally said. "He was really out of control for a large portion of the battle."

"But didn't that give him the upper hand?" Chad asked.

"Yes, but he also attacked Uryu…" Orihime said sadly.

"I… I didn't know…"

"It's not like I bear any resentment about the situation," Uryu said, biting his thumb. "In fact, all I was concerned with at the time was trying to snap him back to his senses."

"So then you think he feels guilty about hurting you?" Chad asked Uryu.

"I don't think that's it." Orihime answered. "I think Ichigo's more worried about what could have happened if he wasn't stopped…"

"Or what could happen next time…" Uryu said.

The three of them sat in silence for the rest of the period. The sun shone brightly overhead.

* * *

3 A.M. Inside Urahara Shop, Kisuke Urahara sits awake on his computer while everyone else sleeps. He had noticed the other night a brief, massive fluctuation of reiryoku that his computer had picked up, but he had not felt. _What could it have been? _He wondered to himself as he began to run more tests. The computer had picked up something similar to arrancar energy as well as a possible Garganta opening, but there had been no sightings of either thing the next day, and it appeared that no one had been attacked in the night. _So then it must have been a scouting mission, _Urahara thought. _So the question now is what were they looking for? And why was no one able to sense their presence here? _

"Always busy, aren't we?" a distorted voice came from behind Urahara. He whirled around, Benihime already in hand, to find himself at the point of a blade. The intruder wore a black suit and tie, and had on a white mask with long horns.

"A Hollow mask…!" Urahara uttered. The intruder laughed.

"Very perceptive, Kisuke Urahara," the intruder said as he laughed again.

"Who are you?" Urahara backed away from the intruder. Was he a new Espada? Urahara couldn't gauge his reitsu. In fact, he couldn't feel it at all. "How did you get in here?"

The intruder cocked his head to one side. "The door," he said pointing. He laughed again. "Oh, you must mean how were you unable to sense me coming? Well, I can do a lot of things that might surprise you…"

Urahara raised his sword. "What do you want?" He could tell that this intruder was no friend.

The intruder took a step forward, and then he was gone. Urahara looked around. _That was shunpo, _he realized. _So then…_The blade was at his throat before he even knew the intruder was behind him. "Like I said, I can do a lot of things, but I'm not perfect," the intruder said, pulling the blade closer to Urahara's neck. The sharp edge was hovering just over his jugular. One move and he was done. "I need a few gigai, like the ones you and Tessai use. Let's say I need them for a covert mission of sorts."

Urahara took a slow gulp. "And if I refuse?"

"You cannot. This is not a request. I'm telling you what you will do for me." The intruder relinquished the blade from Urahara's neck, and then he flashed back in front of him. "I have a lab prepared for you back at my base. You can work there undisturbed."

Urahara raised his sword. "I won't-" The intruder's blade was in Urahara's gut before he could finish his sentence. He gasped, and then realized he wasn't even holding his Zanpakutō anymore. The intruder held it in his other hand by the blade, which was cracked.

The intruder pulled his sword from the bloodless wound and caught Urahara before he could fall. "Let's go." He threw Kisuke over his shoulder and walked for the door.

As he slide it open, Urahara glanced at his sword. His eyes went wide. "That… that Zanpakutō…" he uttered breathlessly.

The intruder put a finger to his masked mouth as he shushed the fallen Shinigami. "Quiet now, Mr. Urahara," he said as he exited the shop. "No spoilers."

* * *

Hey guys! BlackShenlong here, bringing you Chapter 3 already! What can I say, I've really enjoyed writing this so far, so I'm just gonna keep rolling with this spark of creativity! I'll probably slow down now, though, and wait until next week to update again. So enjoy! Comments are greatly appreciated, and thanks for commenting if you already have! Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

The bald man found the other two standing among the ruins of the old town in the human world. They were both Shinigami; captain and lieutenant of the 5th Division. The captain was a tall man with long purple hair that went down his back and hung over his shoulders in the front. He had long bangs that curled over his left eye, and he had a large white rose pinned in his hair. He had a very effeminate face, and his bright red lips and rosy cheeks against his snow-white skin gave him a porcelain-doll appearance. He wore a variation of the standard captain's garb: instead of the standard black kosode, he wore an elegant, cream-colored silk cloak, with the captain haori over that, and he wore a soft-pink shawl over his shoulders. His ruby-red eyes sparkled when he saw the bald man approaching. "Ah, yes, DiAnglez Spenzir," he said in a soft voice, gliding over to the bald man and flashing a dazzling smile. "My most favorite arrancar has arrived!"

"That can't say much, coming from a Shinigami," the bald man replied.

"You wound me, you devil," the captain said with a gasp. He slapped the arrancar coyly on the chest. "Tell me you have come for more than just to insult."

DiAnglez sighed. This Shinigami's strange mannerisms always irritated and confused him. "I am here to update you both on the plan. If you had just met us all at Hueco Mundo-"

The effeminate man gave a posh laugh, covering his mouth with one hand. "Oh, heavens no! What all that sand would do to my skin, my oh my…" He waved a hand in the air dismissively. "No, no, it's much easier for you to just meet us here. On top of that, I think that shark lass has it out for me."

"Very well then…" the bald arrancar muttered. _And yet you're fine meeting in this wasteland instead?_

The captain turned to his lieutenant, who was pocking around in the rubble of an old building. "Benjiro, dear," he called. "Come now. DiAnglez has news for us."

The lieutenant snapped out of his world and jumped up with a start. "Oh! Yes, Captain," he said, moving over to join the two. He was a short boy with square red-rimmed spectacles that sat at the tip of his nose no matter how many times he tried to push them back. His cheeks were dotted with freckles, and his hazel eyes looked at everything with a constant curiosity, although when his gaze fell on the arrancar it changed to a look of contempt. He had short dirty blonde hair that was longer in the back and spiked up in the front, and the tips were dyed orange. He wore the standard Shinigami garb, but he also had a long orange scarf wrapped around his neck, and red earmuffs hooked on one shoulder. "What's the word from Mu?"

"_Lord _Mu, boy." The arrancar slanted his gaze. "Do not forget your place."

"I know my place. He's not _our_ Lord," the lieutenant snapped back.

"Boys, boys, please," the captain moved between the two. "We are comrades; we should not be fighting amongst ourselves!" He turned to his subordinate. "Bejiro, please grant our guest the courtesies he desires."

"Yes, Captain," the young lieutenant said as he looked to his feet.

"Now then," the arrancar cleared his throat. He unzipped his collar, revealing the Hollow hole in the middle of his neck. "We are going to make our move soon. Captain Masato Kenrokuen, Lord Mu wishes for you and Lieutenant Benjiro Natsumi to assist him back at the base."

The captain looked mortified. "DiAnglez, did I not just explain to you the deleterious effects that course sand will have on my soft, delicate skin?" He looked close to fainting as he dramatically covered his eyes with the back of a hand. "I am not a beach-faring individual!"

"Captain, actually I think sand is good for skin," Benjiro cut in. "It helps to exfoliate. The only negative effects to your skin come from the salt water, which dries out your pores."

"And there is no ocean in Hueco Mundo, I can promise you that," DiAnglez said with a gruff sigh.

This caused the captain's expression to change. "…Really? Exfoliate, you say?" he said. His face instantly lit up. "Oh my, yes! Yes, that is positively splendid!" He took DiAnglez's hands in his own. He had purple-painted nails, and his hands were soft and warm to the tough. It made DiAnglez want to vomit. "Alright, we'll do it! When do we leave?"

The arrancar slowly removed his hands from the unwanted grasp. "Immediately. Make up whatever excuse you need to tell the Gotei 13 and head out."

Masato giggled. "What's left of the Gotei 13, anyway… But yes, let Lord Mu know we will be there within the day."

"See that you are," the arrancar turned to leave.

"Wait," Benjiro stepped forward. "What will you arrancar be doing? Why aren't you assisting _Lord _Mu in Hueco Mundo?" The "Lord" came out incredibly sarcastic.

The tone did not faze the arrancar. "We have been tasked with seeking out targets in the world of the living and await further instruction."

"How do you plan on going there without anyone sensing your presence while not with Lord Mu?"

"Kisuke Urahara has been kind enough to create special gigai for us that will allow us to go undercover."

"Do we have Kisuke Urahara in our possession, currently?" Captain Kenrokuen chimed in, suddenly interested.

"He is held captive at the base." The arrancar replied.

"Good." A dark smile crept across the captain's face. "We will be there soon."

As the arrancar departed, Benjiro turned to his captain. "Captain Kenrokuen, should we really be siding with them?" he said worriedly, chewing on this thumb. "I don't trust them."

"Neither do I, my dear," the captain replied, placing a hand on his lieutenant's shoulder. "But this is the wisest decision. In this world, the way things are now, power is everything. Aizen showed us that fact the hard way." He gestured around them to the wreckage of the town. "The only way to get ahead is to be strong. And if we side with this Mu character we can each become stronger than all the Gotei 13 put together. Which isn't saying much these days… But you get my meaning. "

"Yes, Captain," Benjiro did not seem convinced.

"You'll see, Benjiro. But for now, let's go along with their plan. It will be nice to leave this dreadful place." He began to daintily glide along the rubble of the city over to a clearing. "Benjiro, be a good child and open the Senkaimon."

"Right away, Captain," the lieutenant dutifully began to follow his captain over to the clearing. His foot caught on something in the wreckage, and he tripped.

His captain gasped. "Oh my!" he cried out, covering his mouth with his hands.

"I'm alright…" Benjiro grumbled, climbing to his feet and looking at what he tripped over. It was an old worn sign. He could barely make out the writing because it was covered by building debris. He lifted some of the rubble away. "Ku…ro…sa…ki," the lieutenant read. "Kurosaki Clinic. So this was a doctor's office?"

"Yes," Captain Kenrokuen was suddenly behind his subordinate. "But it was destroyed along with everything else when Aizen and his forces invaded Karakura Town. Two of the Kurosakis were Shinigami, didn't you know?"

"I had heard, yes," Benjiro replied. "Former Captain of the 10th Division Isshin Kurosaki and Substitute Shinigami Ichigo Kurosaki, right?"

"Correct, my dear. But they both died in the battle. I had heard they were both very strong, especially Ichigo Kurosaki. They say he was the only one who could go toe-to-toe with Aizen on the battlefield, and yet even he fell."

"…I see," Benjiro's expression changed. "I think I understand now what you mean now."

Masato smiled. "I'm glad. Now, please, let us depart."

Benjiro unsheathed his Zanpakutō, a standard katana with a diamond-shaped guard and a sun charm tied to the end of the hilt. He stabbed the air, and the shōji formed in front of them. They both stepped inside, and the doors closed and vanished.

* * *

Hi! BlackShenlong here! I updated again before the week was over! I've just been REALLY inspired lately. All my ideas are falling into place, which is a great feeling. So this is another build-up chapter. But the action will really start to come within the next 2 chapters. I hope you all enjoy this!

I'm also thinking about doing a biography on all my OCs once the story is over, so just let me know if you would be interested in that or not. I will let you all know that DiAnglez Spenzir is pronounced D-On-Glaze Spin-zir (like sir, with a z). Thanks for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

Ichigo had been absent from school for three days now. Uryu, Chad, and Orihime walked home together at the end of the school day. The sky was covered with more clouds than usual, but it was still sunny out. They walked in silence for a while, none of them really knowing what to say about the matter that was on all of their minds. "Have either of you heard from him at all?" Orihime asked them finally.

"No," Uryu said bluntly. "We're all in the same boat on this, Orihime."

"I… I know," she said quietly. "I just don't know what to do…"

"He hasn't been home at all either," Chad said. "I went by his house yesterday and his sister told me they hadn't seen him. They didn't seem too worried, though…"

"That's just the Kurosaki's. They're all laid back," Uryu said. _They don't know what happened in Las Noches…_

The three friends came to an intersection. Chad and Uryu went one way, and Orihime went the other. "See you after the weekend," Chad said, waving.

"If you hear from Ichigo, let me know," Orihime called back. Uryu nodded, and they parted. Orihime's house was a decent walk away, but she wasn't exactly sure if she was going to head home or not. _Maybe Shinji knows where Ichigo's been… _She thought to herself, rounding a corner. She walked right into somebody, and she fell on her butt.

"Watch where yer goin'!" a gruff voice shouted at her.

"Sorry, sorry!" Orihime cried, embarrassedly climbing to her feet. "I wasn't paying attention. Are you alright?" she reached out to the person she bumped into.

"I'm fine," the rough girl said, swatting Orihime's hand away. The tall girl had a tomboyish appearance with short green messy hair and a fairly built body. She wore a furry white jacket that cut off above her midsection, but under that she wore a white shirt to cover her belly. She had black jeans on and sandals, and around her neck hung a shark's tooth necklace.

"S-sorry again," Orihime stammered.

The tall girl looked her up and down. "Wait a minute… You're Orihime Inoue, ain'tcha?" She finally said, grinning with pointed teeth.

"Oh… Um, yes," Orihime said, surprised. "Do we know each other?"

"Naw, naw we don't. Th' name's Domino Yeltz Boone. But ev'ryone calls me Yeltz. Put 'er there," the tall girl put out a hand.

Orihime shook it. The tall girl had an incredibly strong grip. "Um, excuse me but… How do you know me?"

The tall girl looked surprised by the question. "Huh? Oh, er… Urahara sent me t' find ya! He was lookin' all over for ya!" She finally stammered, looking pleased with herself.

Orihime lit up. "Oh! Does that mean he's found Ichigo?" she asked excitedly.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Yeltz patted Orihime on the shoulder. "We should get goin', ya know? They're both prob'ly worried 'boutcha."

"Right!" Orihime said, and she followed the tall girl around the corner.

* * *

Chad had split up from Uryu, and was walking alone to his house when he heard loud wailing. He moved quickly over to the source of the sound, which was the park. He found a little girl with long purple hair sitting alone on a park bench sobbing. She had a large star pin in her hair, and she wore a large pink sweater that was too big for her so it covered most of her body and her arms and hands. Chad walked over to the bench and knelt down. "Hey there," he said gently, putting a hand on the girl's leg. "What's wrong, little girl?"

The small girl sniffled. "I… I lost my mommy…" she said, wiping her face with a long sleeve. "I don't know where she is and now I'm all aloooone!" She burst into tears again.

"Hey, hey, it's okay," Chad abruptly picked the little girl up and set her on a shoulder. "I'll help you find her. I'm Yasutora Sado, but you can call me Chad."

The girl seemed to open up once she heard his name. "I'm Tinlinn Georgicks. It's nice to meet you, mister," she said quietly, but she smiled.

The two of them walked out of the deserted park and back onto the street. "What does your mom look like?" Chad asked the girl.

"Um… she looks like a hentai princess!" the little girl exclaimed, and then she burst into a fit of laughter.

_A hentai princess?! Why does she know about stuff like that? _Chad wondered worriedly. "Uh… Does she look like you at all…?" he asked her.

"You think I look like a hentai princess?" the girl said, suddenly serious. "You like lolicon, you pervert?"

Chad was utterly taken aback. "WHAT?! N-NO, I ONLY MEANT…" he stammered.

Tinlinn laughed again. "Just joking! I think I know where she went, though," she said, pointing. "That way, mister!"

_What a strange girl…_ Chad thought, already exhausted. The two of them walked down the road and rounded a corner.

* * *

Uryu had been walking alone for a while through a crowded section of town. He rounded a corner, making sure to leave the crowd. He walked farther down the street, alone, and then rounded another corner into an alleyway. Once he was sure he was alone he said, "You can come out now. I know you've been tailing me for a while."

For a moment, nothing happened. But then, a man in a white hoodie and white jeans came from around the corner Uryu had entered from. His face was obscured by his hoodie. "How did you know?" the man asked in a deep voice.

"It was hard to miss you. You stood much too close to me to keep your presence a secret." Uryu tried to feel this stranger out. He seemed to just be a regular human, as he didn't have a strong reitsu at all. "What do you want?"

The man took off his hood, revealing a bald head and a face covered in piercings. "You are Mr. Uryu Ishida, correct?" The man asked. His piercing eyes made Uryu uneasy.

"May I enquire as to who's asking?" Uryu replied. He was trying to feel the man out, but it was hard to tell what he wanted. He didn't seem to be hostile, but something about him left Uryu on edge.

"I am DiAnglez Spenzir," the man said, bowing. "I am here at the request of Mr. Ichigo Kurosaki. Mr, Kurosaki asked me to find you and tell you that he is fine and that there is no need to continue your search for him."

Uryu didn't like that response. "Why would he not want us to find him?" he asked, being careful not to sound too concerned. He wanted to remain in control of the situation.

"Oh, please, do not misunderstand me," the bald man said apologetically. "I only meant that he does not wish for you all to worry about him. If you'd like, I can lead you to him."

Uryu was silent. _This could be a trap, _he thought to himself, _but by who? Who does this man work for? Maybe he is telling the truth…? _Uryu had been able to faintly feel Ichigo's reitsu still in the town. He could tell that Ichigo was trying not to be found, but he was still able to faintly track it. He reasoned that if he focused hard enough, he might be able to roughly pinpoint Ichigo's location so that he would be able to tell if the man was leading him into a trap or not. "Alright, I'll go with you," Uryu finally said. "But I think we should get my other friends first."

The bald man waved a hand. "No need. My colleagues have already rounded up the others. We will all meet up with Ichigo momentarily."

Uryu still didn't much like the situation, but he complied nonetheless. He followed the man out of the alleyway, and onto the street.

* * *

Ichigo sat on the roof of a building in Karakura Town. He had been wandering the city for days now, sleeping wherever he found himself at night. He hadn't eaten much, but he hadn't really had much of an appetite lately. He could feel his inner Hollow nagging at the back of his mind, trying to creep in and take over. He desperately wanted to speak with Zangetsu, but whenever he attempted to go to his inner world he felt overwhelmed by the Hollow's presence and opted not to go inside, fearing that the Hollow might take the opportunity to take control of his body and mind. _What's going on? _Ichigo had no idea how to handle his powers right now. It seemed that whenever he released any amount of energy, the Hollow only grew stronger and closer to gaining control. Ichigo had considered trying to summon his mask a few times, but anytime he did it either wouldn't come or it would break almost immediately. So Ichigo had simply decided to suppress his reitsu as much as possible. If he did not feed the Hollow, it couldn't grow stronger… right? _I'm lost. _Ichigo gazed at the sun, which was beginning to set. He felt like the increasing cloud cover in the sky was mirroring his mind, which was increasingly being clouded by the Hollow's presence. He could almost hear its cruel voice whispering to him, threatening him, telling him it was hopeless to resist, telling him that it would be easier to just let go. _Just… let go? _Ichigo stared at his hand. It was trembling. He balled it into a fist and slammed it on the ground. _I'm lost._

* * *

Urahara sat in the dark laboratory. Although he couldn't see him, he knew that his captor, who had introduced himself as Lord Mu, was always around. He was being held captive in a large facility somewhere in Hueco Mundo. He had had his Zanpakutō taken, and something about the facility made him weak and unable to exert much of his reiryoku, so escape was all but out of the question. He had completed the special gigai days ago, but he was still being held prisoner.

"Are you ever going to let me go?" Urahara called out into the darkness. He knew that the masked man could hear him.

"Perhaps," the distorted voice replied from everywhere in the room. And suddenly Lord Mu was standing before him. "But not until you've completed your next task…"

"Next task-" Urahara began, but he was interrupted by the large front doors opening with a low groan. They both turned to see two figures walking in. One was a tall, effeminate looking man with a white rose pinned in his long purple hair, and the other was a short boy with red-rimmed glasses and spiky dirty blonde hair. Once they got closer, Kisuke could see that they were wearing Shinigami robes, and the taller man had on a captain's haori.

"Ah, you've both finally arrived," Lord Mu said, spreading his arms welcomingly to his new guests. The tall man glided over to Lord Mu and planted a kiss on each of his cheeks.

"Lord Mu, it has been _too _long, my dear." The man spoke with a soft voice. "We came as soon as DiAnglez told us the news." He drifted over to Urahara, who was sitting in a lone desk chair in the middle of the empty room. When he wasn't working on a project for Lord Mu, all equipment was put away so that he couldn't try anything. "So you must be the famous Kisuke Urahara!"

"Yes," Urahara said, weakly. This place drained him of his reitsu, but it didn't seem to affect Lord Mu at all. He could see that the boy was already feeling its effects, as he was sweating. "Why are you wearing the 5th Division Captain's robe and lieutenant band?"

The tall man gave a posh laugh. "Because I am 5th Division Captain Masato Kenrokuen," he said, "and this is my lieutenant Benjiro Natsumi."

Urahara couldn't help but smile. "So they filled Aizen's place already, then?"

"Yes, but not in the world you're thinking of," the masked man spoke up.

"World? What are you talking about?"

"We are in Hueco Mundo, but it is not the same Hueco Mundo you are familiar with," Captain Kenrokuen said with a smile. "Interesting, is it not?"

"I… don't understand," Urahara said. What they were saying didn't make any sense. "So there are two Hueco Mundo's?"

"In a sense," Lord Mu said. "You see, right now you are in a parallel universe opposite the one you live in. We exist as a sort of… Alternate future to your own."

Urahara was silent. This was ridiculous. "If this is a parallel world, then there should, in theory, be a Kisuke Urahara just like me here," he said. "So then why didn't you get him to assist you? Why travel to a whole new dimension?"

"The Kisuke Urahara of this world is long dead, along with many others," Lieutenant Benjiro spoke up now.

"This universe's timeline is currently about ten years ahead of your own," Captain Kenrokuen explained. "In our timeline, the battle with Aizen in Karakura Town did not go as smoothly as planned. Many people died…"

"Our world is in ruins," Lord Mu said. "Karakura Town is destroyed, and what remains of the Soul Society is barely held together by a thread."

"…Is Aizen still alive in this timeline?" Urahara asked after a moment of silence. He wasn't sure if he wanted to hear the answer.

"Yes," Lord Mu responded. "But Ichigo Kurosaki was able to substantially weaken him at the cost of his own life. He is currently comatose in Las Noches right now, regaining his strength."

"I see," There was still something Urahara didn't understand. "So then… What's your goal? Why have you brought me here? Why are you trying to locate the others in my universe?"

"Simply put, we are trying to save your future," Lord Mu said. "I am determined to make sure that Aizen does not win this time around."

"And to do that, we need something from you," Captain Kenrokuen said, smiling.

_What is it? _Urahara couldn't bring himself to ask. Lord Mu answered him anyway. "We need a Hōgyoku of our own."


	6. Chapter 6

Urahara sat in silence while the three men regarded him curiously, awaiting an answer. "You want a Hōgyoku…" he finally said. It wasn't a question, the look in his eyes said that much.

"In the battle against Aizen, he will fuse the Hōgyoku with his own body, giving him immense power," Lord Mu said. The air felt cold and stale in the room now. Although Urahara was close to collapsing from exhaustion, the mere mention of the Hōgyoku had put a look in his eye that was full of strength, and of anger. "As we've already said he survives in this world, and with the Hōgyoku he should make a full recovery in time. We can't let that happen in your world."

"So then you know what you're asking for," Urahara let out a slow, strained breath. "You know more of its power than I do, and yet still you ask me to make another?" Kisuke Urahara stood suddenly. Everyone's faces were painted with shock, excluding the masked man's hidden features. Urahara grabbed his chair for support. "Creating the Hōgyoku was my greatest mistake in life. If what you say is true, I may never be able to atone for the damage that is had caused…"

"This is your chance, don't you see?" Captain Kenrokuen exclaimed. He reached out a hand to Urahara. "You can fix everything, right now. With this, you can save everyone. You can save _your_s_elf_."

Urahara glared at the extended hand. "Save myself? You think I'm that selfish…?" He swatted the hand away, and fell to a knee. _I'm weaker than I thought… _Gripping the chair tightly with both hands, he climbed to his feet. "The Hōgyoku has brought nothing but misfortune since I created it."

"Don't be an idiot!" Benjiro Natsumi said, looking almost as bad as Urahara at this point. "Don't you care about your friends? Don't you care if they die?!"

"Of course I do," Urahara was standing tall and strong now. "And that's exactly why I refuse. I won't do it."

"I see…" Lord Mu turned abruptly and walking away, beckoning the others to follow him. They went through a small door and ended up in a stairwell. Going two flights up, they came to a small room with a large window overlooking the larger room Urahara was in. On the walls were three small screens that were displaying the activities of the three arrancar in the human world.

"Well, that didn't go as well as I'd hoped…" the captain said with a nervous laugh.

"He'll change his mind," the masked man said. "Just give it time."

* * *

It was after dark when the bald man finally stopped walking. He and Uryu stood in front of a large rusted garage door. "We have arrived," DiAnglez Spenzir said, bowing low.

"Where are the others?" Uryu asked.

"They should be here momentarily," the man said with a smile. "Perhaps we should wait for them?"

Uryu sighed. "No need." The Quincy Cross around his wrist twinkled blue, and then Uryu's _Ginrei Kojaku_ was in his hand. He drew the bow and pointed it at the man. "You can explain yourself now, and I'll relay the message after I've dealt with you."

The bald man's smile didn't fade, but it faltered slightly. "Sir… What is this?" he said, sounding apologetic. "If I've offended you in some way…"

"I don't like being lied to, for one," Uryu said, his eyes narrowing. He had felt them getting farther and farther away from Ichigo's faint energy signal since he let the man lead the way. "Now tell me what you really want. Who are you, and how do you know the others and me?"

Now the smile faded. The man's expression changed to one of seriousness. "I'd rather not talk," he said, his voice a deep monotone. "I think it's time for us to make our move." DiAnglez reached into his pocket and pulled out a small caplet. He put it in his mouth and swallowed it.

"What was that?" Uryu demanded, drawing his bow in a threatening manner.

"A gikongan. Did you expect me to fight in this gigai?"

_So that explains why I couldn't feel his reitsu. _"Where did you get those gigai from?"

"I told you, I'm not…" The bald man trailed off. He grabbed his stomach. "What's… going on…?" he muttered.

Uryu lowered his bow slowly. "What are you doing?" he asked. When he got no response, he raised his bow again. "Answer me!"

The bald man was visibly sweating now. "This heat… What is this heat…?" he murmured weakly. A pained expression went across his face, and he looked close to collapsing. His breath was coming in short, raspy spurts, and he began clutching at his chest. Uryu could now see what looked like black smoke sizzling from underneath the hand that was clutching the man's chest. DiAnglez seemed to realize it, too, and with a cry he tore open his hoodie. The black smoke was coming from his bare chest, where the skin was red-hot and smoldering like a burning ember. At first it was just a small spot, but it quickly began to take shape and grow until it was a large blazing kanji on the man's chest. NIGERU._ RUN AWAY._ Uryu jumped back just in time to avoid the blast as DiAnglez's body exploded in a massive blaze of fire.

* * *

Lord Mu stormed into the large room and grabbed Urahara by the collar. "What the hell did you do?!" his voice was a whisper spiked with venom.

Urahara gave a weak laugh. "You thought… I was just going to obediently comply with a man who stabbed me? I'm just lucky you didn't realize what I was doing during the creation process…" He laughed again. "Exploding gigai. Rather brilliant, I must say…"

The masked man threw him to the ground. "Bastard…" He turned to the other Shinigami standing behind him. "Go and make sure nothing else goes wrong," he said to them. The two nodded and exited the large facility. The man turned back to Urahara. "That was a foolish move on your part, Kisuke Urahara," he said. His tone eerily lacked emotion.

"It was foolish of you to assume I'd knowingly put those children in danger," Urahara shot back. He got to his feet and sat down in his chair, panting. He felt like all of his reitsu would be gone within the next few hours. The facility strange draining-effect was going to kill him before long.

* * *

Ichigo slowly opened his eyes. He had been sleeping, for how long he didn't know. His vision coming into focus, he saw a large figure standing over him, their faces almost touching. With a yell, Ichigo scurried back and sat up abruptly. "Mr. Kurosaki, thank goodness I've found you!" Tessai Tsukabishi stood wearing his usual apron and square spectacles, but he looked distraught about something.

Ichigo took a deep breath to recover from his near-heart attack. "You've gotta stop doing that, man…" he said, standing up. It was nighttime now, and Karakura Town was beginning to quiet down. Dark, foreboding clouds covered most of the sky, but thin rays of moonlight still shone through. "What are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same thing," Tessai said, gesturing to the roof Ichigo had currently made his home. "We've been looking for you for days. You haven't been home in who knows how long, and the way you've been suppressing your reitsu made it even harder to track you down. What's going on?"

Ichigo lowered his gaze. "It's nothing. Just leave it, and me, alone," he turned away from the shopkeeper's assistant and walked over to the metal railing surrounding the rooftop. What was he supposed to say? It's not like Tessai could do anything for him. He had already gone to the experts on Hollowfication for help, and they had turned him away. Who else was there to look to? The man who created Hollowfication in the first place… A voice somewhere in Ichigo said. He turned back to Tessai. "Actually… I need to talk to Urahara,"

Tessai frowned. "That's just it, though. That's why we've been trying to find you," he said, moving closer to Ichigo. "Mr. Urahara's gone missing!"

"What? Since whe-" Before he could even finish his thought, a large explosion went off in the city. The two men turned in its direction. "What the hell was that?"

"Hollow activity, perhaps?"

Ichigo pulled his Shinigami badge from his pocket. He hesitated for a moment, staring at the Hollow-looking mask on the badge. Hollow… My Hollow… He had no time to worry about that now. He had to do his duty as a Shinigami. He pressed it to his chest, and his Shinigami soul erupted from his body. Tessai caught his body before it hit the ground. "Take that back to the shop. I'll meet you there once I deal with this."Tessai nodded, and the orange-haired boy sprung from the rooftop, Zangetsu in hand.

* * *

Chad saw the flames erupting from behind a building just a few blocks away. "What in the world…?!"

The little girl with him gasped. "That's where Mommy went!" she cried. "We have to go help my mommy, mister! Please!"

_It could be a Hollow… _Chad set the girl down on the ground. "You wait here," he said as he began to run towards the explosion. Whatever it was, Chad hoped he'd be able to handle it alone.

"No way!" the little girl screamed, chasing after Chad. I'm coming too, you dickhead! You can't leave me behind!"

"N-no, Tinlinn. It could be dangerous," Chad tried to reason with her, but she just kicked him in the shin.

"I'm coming, you dickhead pervert!"

Chad sighed, but he didn't try to stop the foul-mouthed youth.

* * *

Orihime and Yeltz heard a loud boom, and felt a wave of heat wash over them. "That was really close by!" Orihime cried, looking around frantically. She could see a large smoke cloud rising nearby.

"Hey, hey, we gotta check that out!" Yeltz yelled with excitement.

"B-but what about Ichigo and Urahara-"

"Shaddap, they can wait! Le's go!" The tall girl grabbed Orihime firmly by the wrist and ran in the direction of the smoke.

When they arrived, they found Chad just getting there with a small girl at his side. Uryu was also there, his Ginrei Kojaku summoned and in hand. "Chad, Uryu," Orihime cried. "What's going on? What happened?"

The tall girl smirked. "I guess the party's about t' start, huh?" she said. She pulled a caplet from her pocket and swallowed it.

The little girl with Chad jumped up and down. "Yay! Fun time!" she pulled a similar caplet from her sleeve and swallowed it.

"What are you doing?" Chad asked the girl, but she just smiled. "We're gonna fight now, mister!"

"Get ready t' get yer ass ki…" Yeltz trailed off. She grabbed her chest. "…The hell's… going on…?"

The little girl looked agitated. "Ow… This huuurts…" she whimpered.

Uryu turned to his friends. "Get away from them, now!" he yelled. He ran to Orihime, grabbed her, and ran past the two girls with Chad right behind him just as the two of them exploded in a surge of fire.

* * *

Rukia Kuchiki was sitting alone in her room in the 13th Division barracks when the door burst open. "Did you get the Jigokuchō?" Renji Abarai asked abruptly.

She turned to him, frowning. "It's rude to come into a girl's room without knocking first, you know," she said, standing up. She saw Renji's serious expression. "What's the problem?"

"There were explosions in Karakura Town," Renji said, "and now three strong arrancar energy readings are being felt there."

"How strong?" Rukia asked.

"Reports say they could be at least as strong as the Espada you fought in Las Noches," as he said this, a small black butterfly fluttered in through the open door. Rukia extended her finger, and the Jigokuchō landed on it. "They might be too much for just Ichigo and the others alone, so we're supposed to go and help him."

Rukia moved towards the door. "Alright then," she said. "Let's go."

* * *

Ichigo found Orihime, Chad, and Uryu standing right where he'd seen the three explosions go off. Landing in front of them, he approached Uryu. "What happened over here?"

"Where have you been, Ichigo?" Uryu asked, ignoring the question. Ichigo saw that Uryu had his Quincy bow drawn.

"We've been really worried about you," Orihime said, her eyes full of sadness. "Are you okay?"

"It's complicated," Ichigo shrugged off their concern. "But now's not the time for that. Just tell me what's going on."

"To be honest, I'm not sure," Uryu was staring intensely at the smoke flowing from the alleyway. "There are some people using gigai here…"

"Gigai?"

"Yeah, I don't know where they got them from, but they must have been faulty. When they tried to leave them they just exploded. Although right before they did a warning appeared on their chests. Whoever made those gigai for them was not on their side, and that person knew they would come for us."

_That explains Urahara's disappearance… _"Mr. Urahara went missing a few days ago," Ichigo said. The other three looked shocked, but Uryu recovered the fastest. He seemed to understand Ichigo's reasoning.

"So then, do you think Aizen kidnapped him?" Uryu asked. But before they could finish their conversation, a massive reiryoku made them all turn to the smoke.

A bald man stumbled from the cloud into view, his body covered in soot. His face was covered in piercings, and he looked visibly weakened. He coughed, and a cloud of smoke exited his lungs. "Damn him…" he rasped, steadying himself. His white clothes looked disheveled, but intact. His high collar was unzipped down to his chest, and in the center of his neck was a small gaping hole.

"Arrancar…" Ichigo uttered, his voice a whisper.

There was a flash within the smoke, and a large green blast erupted out, flying past the bald man and at the four teens. Orihime ran forward. "Santen Kesshun, I reject!" she cried. Her blue hairpin blinked with light, and a large triangle of light formed in front of the group. The blast smashed into it, and although the shield cracked it held. Orihime was panting when the attack was over.

The blast had cleared the smoke, and now they could see a tall green-haired girl standing, also covered in soot. She was also wearing white garb, and had a hole in place of her bellybutton. She also had a shark jawbone around her neck, which seemed to be the remains of her Hollow mask. She had her hands outstretched before her, with her index fingers and thumbs forming a triangle. She laughed, and then coughed. "That flimsy li'l shield was enough t' block my Cero?" she said, her pointed teeth showing as she caught her breath. "I'll admit I'm a bit impressed."

"Why did we go boom…?" a small voice weakly asked, and a little girl with long purple hair stumbled from behind the taller girl. She had on long white robes too big for her body, and had a small square hat on her head with a broken star adorning it.

"Urahara must have rigged the gigai he gave us…" the bald man said, finally regaining his composure. He dusted himself off. "A clever trick, but he underestimated out strength."

"So you do know where Urahara is, then?" Ichigo stepped from behind Orihime's shield and walked forward. "Just who the hell are you guys? I thought Aizen said he was going to wait to attack!"

The bald man shook his head. "We are not aligned with Aizen, Ichigo Kurosaki."

_What the…? _As Ichigo pondered this, they felt another presence above them. Looking to the sky, they could see a small shoji materializing, and when it opened they found two familiar Shinigami stepping out. "Renji, Rukia," Ichigo called up to them.

Seeing their companions, the duo dropped to the earth. "Ichigo," Rukia said. She nodded to the others. "We've come to help. These guys are strong."

"I can tell," Ichigo said. "Are you Espada?" he directed that question to the three arrancar.

"This is a ranking system designed by Aizen, so we have no such titles," he replied in a low monotone. "However, we are not to be underestimated, I can assure you of that."

_He's definitely the strongest one. _Ichigo looked to the green-haired girl. _She's the second, and the little one's the third. _They all felt like they could be Espada, but they were nowhere near Ulquiorra or even Grimmjow's level. "I should be able to take all of them, no problem," Ichigo said to his friends, stepping forward.

The green haired girl laughed. "Try me," she said, beckoning the orange-haired boy forward.

Before anyone else could make a more, the rusted garage door behind the arrancar began to clatter loudly and then it slowly opened. Inside it was dark, but two men soon stepped from the shadows. The shorter of the two had on Shinigami robes, and he had a lieutenant's badge on his arm. The taller one was an effeminate looking man wearing a white rose in his long hair, a cream-colored cloak on, and a captain's haori over that.

"I didn't know the Gotei 13 was sending a captain, too," Ichigo said, smiling. "Rukia, who are these guys? I've never seen them before."

Rukia was silent for a moment. "I… I don't know. I've never seen them before in my life…" she stammered, clearly alarmed.

"My, my, my," the captain said, flashing a dazzling smile. "It looks like the gang's all here."

* * *

Thanks for reading. Comments are greatly appreciated!


	7. Chapter 7

"Rukia, what did you just say…?" Ichigo Kurosaki stood beside Rukia Kuchiki, staring wide-eyed at the two Shinigami who had just arrived. Ichigo turned to Renji Abarai. "Do you know them?"

"Can't say I do…" Renji uttered, looking just as confused as the others.

"Well, frankly, I'd be surprised if you did!" the captain said with a laugh.

"Is that right?" Ichigo gritted his teeth. "How's about an introduction, then?"

The bald arrancar cut in. "We have no need to explain ourselves to you," He grabbed the hilt of his sword as he said this. "It's time for us to carry out the mission." He turned his head to the Shinigami behind him. "Why are the two of you here?"

"Lord Mu thought you might need some assistance after those fireworks," the captain replied with a giggle.

"We have no need of your help. We can handle them ourselves."

"The numbers say otherwise," the lieutenant said.

Ichigo was losing his patience. "Hey! Who the hell are you guys?"

The captain looked up at Ichigo. A thin smile slid across his face. "Why… We're the enemy, my dear."

"That's all I need to hear." A flurry of blue arrows flew past Ichigo and at the opposition. They hit the bald man and consumed him in a sapphire blaze of energy. Uryu stepped forward, his arrows flying in rapid succession.

The others jumped aside to dodge the attack. "Let's fight!" the green haired girl said, flashing a wicked smile.

"Yaaaay, battle time!" the little girl said, waving her arms about excitedly.

Ichigo and the others stood ready. "Here they come," he said, raising his large blade before him. The green-haired girl pounced at Orihime, but Chad intercepted the tackle, his _Brazo Derecha de Gigante _shielding from the brunt of the hit, and the two of them flew into a building.

"Hey, no fair taking my target Yeltz!" the small girl whined.

Rukia took the opportunity and tried to get a surprise attack on the little girl, but she swiftly parried the blow with her katana that seemed to appear from under her large sleeve. The two of them exchanged strikes for a moment on the ground, but then moved their battle into the air. Renji rushed forward, his sights set on the enemy captain, but his subordinate intercepted Renji's blade and the two lieutenants engaged in combat.

The effeminate captain took a step forward. "Move aside, Ichigo Kurosaki," The man drew his blade, an ornate katana with a shiny ruby-red wrap on the handle and a blade polished to a shine. "You are not a target."

Ichigo stood firm. "Orihime, stay out of the way, alright?"

"Y-yes," the orange-haired girl said, nodding.

The effeminate captain gave a posh laugh. "I see it can't be helped, then," he said. He raised his Zanpakutō in one hand, and held his other hand in the air as though he were balancing himself. "En garde!"

* * *

"You said… You were here to help…" Kisuke Urahara hissed. He was always short of breath now, even when seated. And he was always seated now, as he was too weak to stand for long.

The masked man turned away from his screens to face Urahara. He had brought the shopkeeper up to his viewing room to watch the battle unfold. "And help them, I will," he said, his distorted voice calm and precise. "However, I can do nothing without the Hōgyoku."

"Why are your men…fighting them, then…?"

"To prove a point," Lord Mu paced behind Urahara, but the shopkeeper was too tired to even turn around. "If Ichigo and the others can't even handle my men, then what hope do they have of defeating Aizen?"

"It's not your men… I worry about…"

Kisuke felt a cold firm hand grip his shoulder. "…You seem tired. Isn't it strange? I keep you fed, and you sleep often. Yet you wake up out of breath, and you can do little more than sit around all day. Why is that?"

Kisuke attempted a snort, but it came out more pained and weak than intended. "You must have some…strange field placed over this facility that drains energy…"

"But… I seem well enough, don't I?" His grip tightened.

"Drains the energy of specific people…"

"Ah, but then, why would it also affect the others? I know you could at least tell that young Benjiro suffering while he was here." The masked man _tsk_ed. "No, no, that wouldn't make any sense, now would it?"

"Unless you didn't… Unless… trust them…" Kisuke was beginning to fade.

"I do not fear any of them. They serve me, not the other way around." Lord Mu released Urahara's shoulder. He moved in front of the man and grabbed his face in a hand. "This… presence you feel. This power that eats away at you, day and night, this force that drains you of your energy and will to live… This is my reiryoku."

Urahara was wide-eyed. "How… Impossible…"

He let go of the shopkeeper. "Hollows use their reiryoku to subdue their prey. Although their prey may only be meager Pluses, this principle still applies if used on a larger scale."

"I see… Then that mask isn't… Just for show…" It was becoming increasingly difficult for Urahara to remain awake. But he had to hold on.

Lord Mu laughed. "Kisuke Urahara, I'm telling you this so you understand the gravity of the situation. You _will_ help me. You _have_ to help me," As he said this, he knelt down so that he was at eye level with the blonde man. From this close, Urahara could see into the eyeholes of the man's mask, and he could see small yellow glowing orbs peering back at him. "You feel my power now, don't you? This is just skimming the surface. If you don't make me a Hōgyoku, then my reiryoku alone will kill you. And then, I will do to Karakura Town and I will kill all of them."

"I knew… I knew it… You aren't here to help…at all…" Kisuke's vision was going black. "You just want… The Hōgyoku for… For yourself…"

"No, don't misunderstand me. My deepest wish is for Ichigo to succeed," Lord Mu said, standing up as Urahara's vision completely faded. "But if Ichigo doesn't have the Hōgyoku when Aizen invades, believe me when I say... He and everyone else are as good as dead."

* * *

Hey guys, BlackShenlong here. Short chapter here, just to set up for the battles coming up. I think I might do a separate battle per chapter, but I haven't really decided yet. Also, Lord Mu's true intentions will be revealed very soon. Hope you all enjoy reading this one. Thanks for all your support and kind comments!


	8. Chapter 8: Chad vs Yeltz (Part I)

Chad's body was like a wrecking ball as it crashed into the building. Flying out the other side, he righted himself mid-air and landed hard on his feet. Coming into view from the dust and debris, the green-haired girl stepped out of the gaping hole in the structure with a wide grin on her face. "Good reflexes," she said. "Ya blocked my attack, and ya righted yerself mid-tackle so that ya wouldn't hurt yerself too much on impact. I'm impressed." Chad stayed silent as he extended his left arm out to his side. A clear liquid erupted from his fist and covered his arm. As it solidified, it changed to white with a red stripe running down the length of the center. His fingertips had red diamond shaped marks on them, and a large spike protruded from the shoulder. He raised his shield arm in front of him and held his left arm at the ready. The arrancar's grin widened. "Yer Yasutora Sado, s'that right?"

"Yeah…" was his short anwer.

"Well ain't this my lucky day, then. I heard 'bout yet powers. Ya fight wit yer fists, right? Me too," She tapped the small kodachi that was strapped to the back of her waist. "Sword fightin's fun an' all, but I like me a good ol' brawl." She raised her fist up in front of her, and brought her right knee up to her stomach in a fighting stance. "Ya got any particular fightin' style ya like t' use?"

"…Not really, no," he replied.

"Me, I'm a kickboxer. Nothin' too fancy, but it gets th' job done." Setting her leg back down on the ground, she cocked her head off to one side. "You ain't much've a talker, are ya?" When Chad remained silent, she just grinned again. "I see. You jus' wanna get th' show on th' road, am I right? Alrighty then." The girl gnashed her pointed teeth together a few times. "Oh, an' th' name's Domino Yeltz Boone. But you can call me Yeltz. I guess it's only fair ya know my name since I know yers, Yasutora Sado."

"…Call me Chad," was the boy's only reply.

Yeltz grinned. "Alrighty then, Chad. I can't wait t' gnaw th' skin off yer bones!" She moved forward quickly, using her Sonído to disappear and reappear closer and closer. Just as she was right on Chad, she vanished. Whirling around, Chad had just enough time to swing his right arm up to block a crushing roundhouse from the arrancar.

Sliding back a few yards but keeping his feet planted, Chad sprinted towards his foe, his left hand open. Blueish disks of static energy were forming at his fingertips and sparking around in his palm. _There's no need to prolong this battle…! _He thought as he rushed forward. The spike on his right shoulder split open into three prongs, and blue energy blasted forth. Swinging his right fist at Yeltz, he cried, "El Directo!"

The green-haired arrancar dodged to the left, easily avoiding the attack. "You'll havta do better n'at, Chad," she called out with a smile.

"I am," he said, clenching his left fist. He threw a left hook hard into Yeltz's side, catching her off-guard and knocking the wind out of her. Her eyes went white on impact, and spit flew from her mouth. "La Muerte."

With an explosion of blue, Yeltz went flying sideways into a building, smashing through it and causing debris to fly everywhere. Chad let his fists fall to his sides. _It's not over yet, _he thought. _I still have to help the others. _Running back to the hole he had originally flown through, he was about to climb through when he felt something tug at the back of his shirt. "We're not done here." Chad was thrown backwards through the air and landed tumbling in the street. Getting to his feet, he saw Yeltz standing before him, looking mostly unscathed but for a burn mark where his fist has hit her. "Ya thought that attack would put me outta commission?" she snarled, baring her teeth. "It'll take a lot more n'at t' put me down, boy." Moving faster than Chad could react, her fist made contact with his chin as she rocked him with an uppercut. Chad almost bit his tongue off as his teeth gritted together and his body rocketed skyward. _That attack barely fazed her… _Yeltz appeared above him, her right leg raised high in the air. Chad moved quickly, twisting his body in the air so that his shield arm would block the attack. Yeltz's leg came down in a powerful axe kick, and Chad was hurled back to the earth like a meteorite.

Yeltz landed safely on the ground as Chad was slowly getting to his feet. He might have blocked the kick, but the impact had sent him smashing into the ground back-first. He wiped the blood from his chin, never taking his eyes off the arrancar. _One quick blow won't be enough to take her out. I'll need to keep connecting strong hits to wear her down. _Overhead, he saw the air flash, and for a moment a large bubble-like dome was visible in the sky before vanishing. _Someone must have put up a barrier, _he thought. _Good. Now I don't have to hold back. _His right shoulder began to blaze again, and he pulled back his fist. "El Directo!" Throwing his fist forward, a large blue wave of energy erupted forth. Yeltz easily sidestepped the blast, grinning at Chad all the while. Chad charged forward, both fists clenched tight. Yeltz stood her ground, her eyes almost beckoning Chad closer. Chad connected a strong left to her face, and her neck snapped back from the force. Within seconds she recovered, and countered with a swift uppercut to his gut.

The two of them exchanged blows, Chad throwing slow but strong swings while Yeltz delivered quick stinging hits. Throughout all of this, Yeltz was laughing maniacally. "This is great," she cried, a crazed grin streaked across her face. Her eyes had gone wide, and her pupils were large and black like a shark's. Blood was flying amongst the two of them, though whose blood it was at this point was hard to tell.

Chad knew that Yeltz was allowing them to fight like this because she enjoyed it; she was much faster than he was, and although Chad was physically stronger she could have easily overwhelmed him with her speed. He had to take advantage of this while he could. _If I can just connect a few more strong blows…_

"Chad, yer slowin' down," the wild arrancar shrieked, throwing a flurry of kicks his way. "I don' wan' this t' end yet!" She was right; more and more of her attacks were starting to hit him before he could dodge or block. He was getting tired. But so was she.

"I do," Chad said, jumping back out of range of Yeltz's attack. "El Directo!"

This time the blast made a direct hit, and it send Yeltz soaring backwards like an azure comet. Chad raced after her, not wanting to give her any time to recover. He found her stumbling to her feet from a crumpled car she had smashed into. Chad's left fist caught her under the jaw, and before she could even lift the ground his right arm slammed her into the ground. Chad raised a clenched left fist, sparks flying around his arm. "La-"

A strong kick caught him in the side, and he stumbled as he lost his breath. Yeltz sprung into the air, blood dripping from her nose and mouth. "RAAAAH!" It seemed that the more blood she tasted, whether it was Chad's or her own, the wider her pupils got. The whites of her eyes were almost invisible at this point as she pounced towards Chad, mouth agape in a mad battle cry. Chad rolled away from her as she threw an axe kick that split the ground open. Yeltz shrieked again as she leapt at the boy, looking more like a crazed beast than a person. She landed on top of him and unloaded a burst of furious punches on his face. "DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE," she chanted as she continued to beat Chad. "BLEED BLEED BLEED BLEED DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE!"

Chad finally yelled and threw her off of him using his reiatsu. As they both got up, Chad's right shoulder began to blaze again. Yeltz pounced with a roar, but Chad was ready this time. "El Directo!" His punch hit her in the chest again, and she went tumbling backwards. Again she got up, and again she pounced. Her bloodlust had blinded her to reason. This time, she landed on Chad again and began to punch and scratch at his face. In the mad flurry of it all, Chad was able to get his right arm free and grab Yeltz by her shirt. He pushed her back, and then curled his left hand in a tight fist. "La Muerte!" he cried as his fist crunched into the side of her head, knocking it to the side with a painful snapping sound. She rolled off to the side as he slowly got to his feet, blood pouring from his face in various places. She lay still for a long time while Chad just stood breathing heavily while blood dripped from his body.

Eventually, her body shook as though it was shocking itself back to life, and she stood up slowly. She was wobbly on her feet, Chad could see, and her head was leaning uncomfortably to one side. "Ya… Ya almost broke mah neck with tha' one…" she mumbled, shambling towards Chad. Her body didn't seem to be cooperating with her anymore. "I c'n barely move…" She chuckled roughly, and then coughed up a bit of blood.

"It's over, Yeltz," Chad said, wiping the blood from his face with his shirt. "You're going to die."

"Heh… Heh heh… Nah… It ain't…" she fell to one knee, panting heavily. "It ain't over…"

"I'm sorry it had to end like this," Chad said, turning away from her. "I didn't mean to do this to you…"

"Don' ya dare… Turn yer… back to me…!" She was getting up, slowly and weakly. She pulled her sword from its sheath and raised it in front of her face. "I still have… A' ace in th' hole…!"

Feeling her reiatsu rise, Chad turned around, remembering. _No…_

"Didja ferget," she said, smiling in spite of her appearance. "We arrancar… we have a released state. Jus' like th' Shinigami…"

_Dammit, no! _Chad had no time to react. It felt like time was standing still.

Yeltz's small blade began to glow with a faint green light, and the air around her began to whip around her like a small hurricane. "_Hunt… Jaquetón Blanco!_"

* * *

Hey guys, BlackShenlong here! Sorry I have not updated in a while! I was just finishing up the school year, and I wasn't having much writing inspiration anyway. But now I'm back, and I plan to be updating a lot more coming up. I'll be honest, it was really hard writing this chapter because Chad has really boring powers in my opinion, but in the second part of the fight I think I can have more fun with my OC's resurrección. Hope you guys like this chapter more than I liked writing it! And thanks for sticking with me!


	9. Chapter 9: Chad vs Yeltz (Part II)

The large green explosion knocked Chad off his feet. The air around him was whipping around like a storm, and a large cloud of dust obscured the arrancar. Chad had felt her reiatsu spike just before the explosion, but now he couldn't feel anything at all. As he slowly climbed to his feet, he knew that he wouldn't be able to continue this fight for long. He had allowed Yeltz to get in too many hits, and that was before she had activated her Resurrección.

Before the dust had even settled, Chad felt the massive pressure of her reiatsu. He winced as the reiatsu crushed him, but he didn't fall. Looking at the dust cloud, he could see Yeltz's new form coming into view. A massive shark stood where Yeltz had once been. Its massive, bone-white body was covered in strange tribal etchings and designs. Its small, beady black eye-holes were hollow, and its gills exhaled hot steam. On its upper sides were long, robotic arms that had balls for elbows. The hand, which was as big as Chad's body, was like a large gauntlet, and on the wrists were crescent serrated white blades. On the shark's underside were two short legs with balls for knees and large round feet. As the shark lifted its body, its hollow hole was visible on its belly. The shark opened its mouth with a hiss, and behind the rows of teeth was a grinning face.

"Impressive, innit?" Yeltz said, her large shark body slowly moving forward. With each step the ground around them trembled slightly. "This, Chad, is mah true form." Her fingers flexed with a squeak, and her shark body shuddered. "It's been a while since I've hadta use this. I might be a lil' bit rusty."

"El Directo!" A blue comet of energy blazed towards Yeltz. The shark's mouth opened wide, and Yeltz grinned madly. Small green particles began to cluster together into a glowing green orb in front of Yeltz, and out from the orb shot a massive blast of energy. The Cero tore through Chad's blast like fire through a tissue, and Chad threw up both arms in defense as the green blast engulfed him in a blinding inferno. Chad wasn't sure how long he was airborne, but when he finally realized that he had hit the ground he found himself lying in a crater in the side of a small building far away from where he had been. His clothes were singed, and his ears were ringing. He shakily got to his feet, trying to feel the arrancar's position. There was a loud buzzing sound, and then Chad felt the crushing reiatsu of his opponent. He turned around sharply, but wasn't fast enough to block the massive fist that crushed his stomach. The blow would have sent him flying, but Yeltz grabbed him by the leg and slammed him into the concrete. Chad struggled to get up, but a heavy foot smashed him back to the ground. Two large fingers gripped the side of his head and pulled it up painfully so that Chad was staring straight into the mouth of the shark at Yeltz's face.

"Have ya reached yer limits already, Chad?" Yeltz asked, sounding disappointed. "I haven't even used a quarter of mah strength yet." She let his head drop, and the pressure of her heel was lifted from Chad's back. He felt a brief moment or respite, and then his body was pounded deeper into the ground by a strong stomp. And then another. And another. Chad's body was almost becoming numb to the pain by the time the assault finally ceased. He felt as though he was watching from a distance as his crumbled body was picked up by the great shark arrancar, and was thrown back into the ground. He was no longer a part of his body, just a spectator to the battle. Yeltz picked him up again. "Pathetic," she said with a sigh. "We were havin' so much fun a minute ago, too. Now you know why I don't use this form so much." She held Chad by his arm and let his body dangle in front of the shark's open maw as her Cero began to charge again. "Battle's end too damn quickly."

"Koten Zanshun: I reject!" A bolt of light slammed into the arrancar, knocking her off her feet and releasing her grip on Chad. They both fell hard on the ground, with Chad falling on his face.

Chad couldn't move, but he already knew who had launched the attack without seeing them. "Ori…hime…" he mumbled, barely louder than a whisper.

"Chad! Chad, are you alright?" Orihime called to her friend. She was at his side in an instant. She turned him on his back and assessed the damage. "Chad, you're barely alive! I'm glad I got here when I did."

"Ori…hime…" Chad wanted to shout, but he could barely even manage his low grumblings. "Need to… run… Too powerful…"

"Don't worry, I've got you," Orihime cradled Chad's head in her lap as her hairpins began to glow again.

The two were interrupted by a roar as the massive arrancar stood up. Other than a slight sing on the arrancar's side, she looked completely unscathed. "That surprised me, I'll give ya that," Yeltz said with a scowl. "But you're gonna have to do a lot better'n that if you plan on _winnin'_." She pulled back a large fist.

"Orihime… run…!" Chad rasped, more urgency in his voice. He tried to move but still couldn't.

"I won't leave you here," Orihime said back. "I'll protect you! Santen Kesshun: I reject!" With a flash, a wall of light formed between the two and the arrancar.

"It won't… hold…!" Chad tried to scream, but only managed a hoarse cough. As Yeltz's fist rushed at the two children, they were suddenly pulled aside by an unknown force. The arrancar's punch shattered through the shield with ease and left a crater where Chad and Orihime had been.

"What the-?!" the arrancar started, but then she was hit in the side by a barrage of explosions which knocked her off balance.

"Thank goodness I got here in time!" a familiar figure said with a huff as he knelt down to set Chad and Orihime down a few yards away from the danger.

"Oh, Mr. Tessai, th-thank you," Orihime stammered, clearly surprised the two of them were still alive.

"I've been monitoring everyone's battles since they began," the large man said. "I just wanted to make sure everyone would be okay."

From behind them, Yeltz got to her feet again. "All these pests appearin' out of nowhere… It's startin' t' piss me off!" As another barrage of what Chad now saw were missiles impacted Yeltz's side, he also saw Jinta appear with his signature kanabō and slam the large shark in the head. Ururu landed on a rooftop nearby carrying her shoulder cannon and fired off more missiles.

Tessai stood up, and turned to face the battle. "Ms. Inoue, please tend to Mr. Sado's injuries. We will buy you some time!" Tessai swiftly moved to the rooftop next to Ururu just as Jinta also arrived. As the smoke cleared, it was clear that the two children's attacks had done nothing more than enrage the large arrancar.

"Alright, I've had a good laugh from yer 'attacks' now, but it's time t' end this," the arrancar opened its large shark mouth and began charging a Cero at the three shop workers. Ururu fired off a volley of missiles, but they didn't even faze Yeltz.

Just as the shark beast was about to fire the blast, Tessai formed a handsign. "Bakudō #99, Number 1. Kin!" Large swathes of black fabric wrapped around the arrancar's body, tying her arms up behind her back and twisting her legs together. The fabric also wrapped the shark's mouth shut, causing the Cero to detonate inside of the arrancar's shark body. Large metal stakes pinned the fabric to the ground, and caused Yeltz to come crashing down. Tessai turned to Orihime and Chad. "This will only hold it for a moment. Hurry!"

"Yes!" Orihime called back. She set Chad's head down and extended her arms over his body. "Sōten Kisshun: I reject." A large orb of light engulfed Chad's entire body as Orihime began to heal him. He could feel his bones mending themselves, the blood that had spilled into his chest cavity returning to his fixed arteries, and the burns and bruised shrinking until they were gone entirely. Chad's clothes were even returning to the way they had been before he had begun his battle with Yeltz.

Chad sat up, feeling completely rejuvenated. "Thank you, Orihime," he said with a smile.

"Of course," she smiled back.

Chad got to his feet just as Yeltz had torn away at the last cloth keeping her arm tethered to the ground. She reached for her shark mouth with both hand and ripped away the fabric keeping it shut. It opened with a hiss as black smoke expelled from it to reveal the charred face of a woman. "Now yer dead," she snarled, balling both large hands into fists.

"YELTZ!" Chad's voice boomed. The arrancar looked surprised, as though she had forgotten Chad was even there. "Leave them alone. This is our fight."

"Chad! Ya look good as new," she said, smiling. She turned away from the shop workers to face her original foe. "I'm glad t' see that, I really am. I don't even care how it happened, neither. I'm just glad we can have a good battle again." Her arms flexed with a creak, and she bent her knees. "Get ready. I'm not gonna go easy on ya."

"Mr. Tessai, take Orihime and the others and get somewhere safe. I'll handle this from here," Chad shouted. His eyes went wide as he realized what was happening. He shoved Orihime to the side. "Orihime, move!"

The arrancar's arms and legs folded into its body so that its feet and the blades on its wrists resembled fins and it looked more or less like an actual, but much larger, shark. Its mouth was wide open, and Yeltz had a crazed look on her face. "_Caza Sangre!_" The shark swam through the air faster than one would expect something of that size to move, and grabbed Chad in its jaws as it passed. Chad held the shark's mouth open with his arms, but it was taking all his strength just to do that. They slammed into a building, and Chad went flying out of the sharks mouth and landed on his feet a few yards away. The arrancar's arms and legs emerged from its body. Chad realized they were in a dimly-lit parking garage that had no windows save for the large hole the two had entered from. "I'm real pleased ya got yer strength back, Chad," Yeltz said again. "Now I can really show ya this body's powers." One of her fin-blades began to glow faintly. "_Fosa del Mar!_" Swinging her wrist upward, a large surge of energy erupted forth, sliding on the ground towards Chad. He rolled out of harm's way, then turned to see the wave of energy had left a deep trench in the ground where it had cut through.

Chad turned back to his opponent just in time to find her right on him, a massive fist raised over his head. He darted forward, just missing the crushing punch, and then pulled back his left arm. "La—" Energy began to spark around his fist, and he leapt into the air. "—Muerte!" His fist swung forward, his punch aimed at the shark's side. A large hand intercepted the attack, and Chad's fist impacted with a loud crack and an explosion of energy. When the smoke cleared, Yeltz looked completely uninjured. The energy around Chad's arm fizzled for a moment, and then it was gone. "What…?"

"That's not gonna work like it used to, Chad," The arrancar gripped Chad's fist in hers and slammed him hard on the ground. "My new skin's basic'lly indestructible."

She went to stomp him again, but this time he rolled over and threw a punch with his right arm. "El Directo!" The blast hit Yeltz's foot and lifted her off the ground for a moment before she came crashing down. Chad took the opportunity to get up and sprint away from her into the darkness of the parking garage. He needed to take a moment to think up a new strategy. His attacks weren't working on her new form, and although he was back to full strength if he didn't figure something out soon he knew that he would still lose.

Chad ran up to the second level of the garage, which was full of cars. He ducked behind a large van, and waited to catch his breath. Before long, he could hear the heavy footsteps of the arrancar. "Chad, ya can't hide from a shark," he heard a distant voice calling. He heard a far off crunch, and then he saw what used to be a car fly by and smash into a row of cars just across from him. "I've already gotten a whiff of yer blood. I don't need to see ya to find ya." Chad's body had been healed, but already he was bleeding again from new wounds. He touched his forehead and looked at his hand. Even in the dim light, he could see the dark liquid on his palm. He wiped it on the van absently, and then he had an idea. He took a deep breath, and then he carefully peeked around the back of the car. He could see the large hulking figure getting closer, but she was still moving relatively slow. _She loves this, _Chad thought to himself grimly. _She lives for the hunt. _Patting the van one last time with a bloodied palm, Chad darted forward as quickly and silently as he could. Unfortunately for him, he wasn't as quiet as he thought, and Yeltz immediately turned in his direction. "_Aleta Serrucho!_" The fin-blades on both of her wrists began to glow, and she slashed them forward. Two whirling crescents of energy emitted from both blades and spun towards Chad at high speed. Luckily, the attack was only aimed in Chad's direction, and not Chad himself, so he was able to easily avoid them as he made his way to the other row of cars. One of the crescent energy blades tore into the car Chad had been near previously, while the other sliced through a far-off wall. Chad touched his forehead again, and wiped the fresh blood on the car he was now next to. He carefully rolled over the hood of that car, making sure not to set off the alarm, and then he wiped more blood on the other cars around him. He kept doing this as he went down the row, every now and then switching rows, until the majority of the cars on that level had his blood on them. He could hear Yeltz chuckling, the sound echoing off the walls of the garage. "Clever little fish, ain't ya," she said, then, "Fosa del Mar!" The attack tore through a row of cars behind Chad like they were nothing. He could hear the arrancar smashing up cars and throwing them about in an attempt to flush Chad out. _She'll bring the whole building down on us! _Chad realized as Yeltz released a Cero blast that narrowly missed the car Chad was taking shelter behind. Chad stood up, lifted the car he was hiding behind, and tossed it at Yeltz. She grabbed it in her shark jaws and chomped it to smithereens in a matter of seconds, but it still gave Chad a chance to move to the third level of the garage.

Before he even had a chance to inspect his surroundings, there was a rumble below his feet. The ground below him exploded as the massive shark tore through and bit into Chad's side. "Caza Sangre!" The two of them broke through floor after floor until they sprung through the top onto the roof. Yeltz released her grip on Chad, and he fell to the ground. He was bleeding from multiple bite wounds, but he still managed to get to his feet. The shark opened its mouth wide so that Chad could see the arrancar's face. Yeltz was grinning wide, and the whites of her eyes were getting smaller as her pupils enlarged. She was licking blood off her cheek. "Delicious," she screeched. She took a step forward, and Chad shakily took a step back. "Chad, I'm gonna really enjoy devourin' you." She rushed forward at him, shark jaws wide. Chad wanted to run, wanted to just jump back down into the building and hide again, but something kept his feet planted. _Wait for the right moment, _a voice whispered. _Strike her when she's vulnerable. She has a weak point. _As the massive arrancar descended upon Chad, he had a sudden moment of clarity. "Her weak point," he said aloud. He clenched his left fist tight. "La Muerte!" His fist slammed into Yeltz's face just before the shark's jaws closed around him. She cried out in pain as she recoiled back, he arms clawing at the air in front of her face.

Chad jumped back and then fell to a knee from exhaustion. His wounds were bleeding more than he had initially been aware of, but he didn't care. His attack had worked. The arrancar roared, and then faced Chad. Yeltz's eyes were wide, and her nose was broken and bleeding. "Still got some fight in ya, eh?!" she snarled. She swung a blade at Chad, and although he dodged it still sliced into his left arm. She swung wildly at Chad, who avoided the brunt of all her attacks but still sustained a few minor cuts along his body. He could tell that she was going into a frenzy again, just as she had done before she transformed. _She likes spilling blood, but doesn't like when her own comes out… _

As she roared at him again, he threw a right-handed punch into her mouth. "El Directo!" The shark devoured the blast and fell backwards in pain. Chad had to take advantage of her madness while he could. He ran forward, both fists pulled back at his sides. He pounced at Yeltz, ready to deliver another blow. "La Muerte!" The shark's jaws shut abruptly, and Chad's fist impacted uselessly against its teeth.

"No more…" the arrancar muttered bitterly, and then it swatted a large hand at Chad. He flew sideways and landed hard on his arm as the arrancar got to her feet. Her fins began to glow. "Aleta Serrucho!" She swung her blades at Chad furiously, releasing dozens of the spinning crescent blades in his direction. Even blocking the attacks with his shield arm, they still left cuts that got deeper and more numerous as he continued to rough the storm. Chad knew he had to get the shark to open its jaws again, and the only way he knew how to get Yeltz's attention was to spill his own blood. Holding his shield arm in front of him, he ran forward, each crescent blade stinging on impact. He could see the shark's jaws slowly opening as he got closer and closer. _She can't resist, _he knew, pulling back his left fist. _She has to have another taste. _The shark's jaws were wide by the time Chad was right up on the arrancar. His fist sparked with energy. "La Mue-!"

"Enough!" the arrancar slammed a fist down on top of Chad, squashing him on the ground. Yeltz picked up Chad in a large fist and began squeezing him tightly. He let out a shriek of pain as he felt his bones grind together. "I've had just about all I can take of you…" the arrancar said angrily, squeezing the boy harder. She was no longer enjoying the battle, which was bad for Chad. She threw him down on the ground, and smashed an open palm on his back. Chad felt like he was back to where he started at the beginning of his battle with her transformed state. His body was broken, and he was about to die. The large shark picked him up again, and brought his face close to hers. "It's been fun," she whispered to him, her pupils piercing black dots filled with rage, "but now I havta kill you." She tossed his body high into the air above her. "I'll char ya alive and then gobble up the remains!" she yelled as her Cero began to charge.

Chad was barely conscious as his body flipped through the air. He closed his eyes as he let his mind wander. He thought about his weakness, and how he was unable to defeat his opponent. He thought about how he would die soon, and finally be reunited with his _abuelo_. He thought about how he let down his friends, and how this monster would go after them next. _My friends… _It wasn't just about Chad. His friends were already off fighting their own battles; they didn't have time to clean up his mess. He had to finish this here, to protect his friends. _To protect Ichigo…_ He thought back to the time when he had first met Ichigo. They had made a promise to each other that day. "You hit for my sake," Ichigo had said to him, "and I'll hit for yours."

Chad's eyes snapped open, and he righted himself in midair. "Yeltz," he shouted down at the arrancar, "I can't lose here. This isn't just about me. I have to win for those I want to protect… I have to win for my friends!"

Domino Yeltz Boone cackled wildly. "S'a lil' late fer that, don'tcha think?!" Her Cero was almost fully charged at this point.

Chad clasped his two hands together in a large fist above his head. This would be his final attack, win or lose. He mustered all the strength he had left into his two arms. _Abuelo, please, lend me the strength to protect my friends! _Yeltz's Cero exploded through the sky, heading straight for Chad. Chad's entire body began to glow blue with energy. He could feel power coursing through him, power he didn't know he had, power he never thought he could possibly muster. _Thank you, Abuelo… _"_Brazos Gemelas del Guerrero: Gran Juicio!_" He swung his arms down into the Cero, and the two collided with a great flash. At first it seemed like the two would hold each other in the air, but then Chad began to tear through Yeltz's Cero.

"I-Impossible!" the arrancar shrieked.

As Chad got closer to Yeltz, he raised his arms again. "This is it!" he cried, and then slammed his fists down onto Yeltz's exposed face. There was a great explosion, and the entire parking garage collapsed with a great heave.

When the dust and debris finally began to settle, Chad was standing, battered and bloody but triumphant, over Yeltz. Yeltz's shark body had broken off her, and she was left back in her original form. "I can't believe… I lost… To a human…" She mumbled weakly, before her body began to crumple into dust and blow away in the wind.

Chad stood for a moment breathing heavily, and then fell to his knees. He has reached his limit. But it didn't matter to him at all. "I won," he whispered to himself. His bones ached, his body was bruised, and he had bled out almost completely, but he had won. He let out a great sigh, and then fell face-first onto the ground.

* * *

Hi everybody! BlackShenlong here, finally giving you part 2 of Chad's epic battle against the arrancar. Sorry it took so long to get here, but I finally got it done. I plan to start writing more frequently, as I'd like to get this fanfic done so I can focus on my other writings/possibly begin work on another Bleach fanfic. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Please feel free to leave feedback and let me know what you thought. I'll give you guys the translations of all the attacks I made up as well. Since arrancars and Chad typically name their attacks in Spanish, I did the same with all of mine:

**Caza Sangre** - Blood Hunt

**Fosa del Mar** - Sea Trench

**Aleta Serrucho** - Saw Fin

**Brazos Gemelas del Guerrero: Gran Juicio** - Twin Arms of the Warrior: Great Judgement

and finally **Jaquetón Blanco**, which means Great White.

Thanks again to all my readers! I couldn't keep writing this if I didn't know I had people out there who enjoyed the story I was telling. Thank you for all your support!


	10. Chapter 10: Uryu vs DiAnglez (Part I)

Thousands of small blue arrows flew from Uryu's _Ginrei Kojaku_ in a blue column of flowing energy. At first the wave of arrows completely consumed their target, but after a moment there was a burst of yellow, and then another, and then many more. Looking ahead, Uryu realized that the bald arrancar was somehow matching each arrow with a burst of yellow energy that he shot forth with his fist. The two of them continued to trade shots at each other, but Uryu began to realize that his arrows were starting to lose ground with the arrancar's blasts, and he dodged aside to avoid the attack.

DiAnglez Spenzir's fists rippled with yellow sparks for a moment, and then he let them fall to his sides. "My _Bala _is even faster than the average arrancars," he said in his low voice. "Your arrows won't be able to keep up."

The arrancar's clothes were torn up from Uryu's attack, but other than a few dirt marks his skin was virtually unscathed. _It looks like my arrows are pretty useless right now…_

As if to answer Uryu's thoughts, DiAnglez said, "Did you really think those pitiful arrows would be able to cut my _Hierro_? Perhaps you should have let Mr. Kurosaki handle this battle?"

"…" Uryu released another stream of arrows, but the arrancar blinked out of the way with his Sonído. He held out a hand with his thumb, pointer and middle fingers extended, and a yellow Cero erupted forth. Uryu dodged the blast, barely, and swiftly darted to a rooftop nearby. _There was virtually no charging time on that blast…! _Uryu let loose a larger wave of arrows, and the arrancar matched them with his Bala. Uryu increased the number and speed of his arrows, and before long the arrancar could no longer keep up. Eventually the arrancar was overwhelmed. Crossing his arms in front of his face, DiAnglez stood completely still as the small arrows consumed him in their azure light. Uryu only ceased firing arrows when he felt that he was wasting his reiryoku.

As the smoke cleared, Uryu held his breath. _Damn. _Apart from the arrancar's clothes being tattered to shreds, his skin was completely unharmed. Steam hissed from his body where the arrows had hit, but no burns, cuts or bruises were present. "Now you've gone and ruined my garb…" the arrancar said, almost bored.

Uryu raised his bow before him. "Do you think that's the best I can do?!" he shouted, before firing off one massive arrow at the arrancar. The arrow hung low to the ground, and the concrete beneath it tore to pieces in its wake. DiAnglez stood his ground, his face expressionless. Just before the arrow was on him, the bald arrancar raised a fist with a roar and punched the top of the arrow just before it hit him, causing it to explode in a brilliant display. Uryu raised an arm to shield his eyes, slightly out of breath from the move.

"You don't quite appreciate the gap in our abilities yet, Mr. Ishida." The voice behind Uryu made his eyes go wide. Before he could even turn around, DiAnglez's elbow was crunching down on Uryu's right shoulder. Uryu cried out as he smashed through the roof of the building he was standing on, and fell down onto the rubble below. A silhouette stood over Uryu as he lay in pain. "How fragile you humans are," the bald arrancar remarked, his sullen eyes drilling holes into Uryu.

Uryu tried to get up, but each motion sent a thousand knives into his side. His shoulder was definitely shattered, and he felt like his arm and a few ribs were at the least cracked. "Bastard…" he hissed.

"How is a Quincy to use his bow with only one arm?" The arrancar raised his hand in the sign he used before. "A lame animal should be put down." The arrancar fired off his Cero, and the yellow light engulfed both men. The building they were in collapsed, and DiAnglez appeared hovering in the air shortly after. His eyes were slowly scanning the terrain. They were in a section of the city with many small shops and a long, wide street in the middle. "I'm impressed, Mr. Ishida," the arrancar shouted. "You realized that my Cero sacrifices power for speed, so by fortifying your bow with your reiryoku you were able to block the brunt of my attack and escape in the explosion. Still," the arrancar shook his head, and his earrings jingled faintly, "you still have no way of attacking me anymo-" The arrancar was cut off by a blue streak of light flying by his face. He touched his cheek, and there was red on his fingertips. "What…?!"

Uryu stepped out from behind one of the shops, his bow drawn. "You really shouldn't underestimate your opponents, especially when you know nothing about them."

The arrancar looked momentarily bewildered, but he quickly resumed his calm demeanor. "Your arm… I know I broke it," he said, pointing.

"_Ransōtengai_," Uryu replied. "Using the reishi around me, I'm able to create strings that I can use to control my arm even if it is shattered." Uryu let another large arrow loose, but the arrancar swiftly dodged to the side. Uryu smiled. "I guess you're taking me seriously now?"

The arrancar fired a Cero, and Uryu ran into one of the shops for shelter. The roof tore off from the blast, and Uryu used the new opening to move to the next shop. He needed to stay out of sight while he formed a plan. _My regular arrows have no effect on him, so using them will only drain my own energy. It seems like some of my stronger arrows will work if I can find an opening, and I know for a fact that _that _arrow can cut him. _The arrancar fired a few more Ceros to try and flush Uryu out, but the Quincy was swift on his feet and managed to stay out of harm's way. _I need to catch him off guard somehow so that I can get in a strong hit. If I can just get in one good blow… _DiAnglez came crashing through the roof in front of Uryu. Uryu jumped back and tried to fire off another arrow, but the arrancar's Cero was faster. Uryu went crashing through the wall onto the street, rolling as he hit the ground and getting to his feet quickly. Luckily, he had been able to block the Cero again, but he hadn't had enough time to fortify his bow so this time the blast's impact was more severe.

The arrancar slowly walked out of the shop, his arms crossed behind his back. "I find myself growing impatient with your antics, Mr. Ishida," he said in his low voice. "I think it's time I fulfilled my mission here and killed you."

"I think you'll find it won't be that simple," Uryu said between breaths.

"I beg to differ." The arrancar rushed towards Uryu, his arm extended before him. He fired off a Cero, but Uryu jumped out of the way and launched off a few large arrows. Only one of them hit their mark, but the arrow did knock DiAnglez off-balance. Uryu shot off a dozen more arrows, but this time the bald arrancar dodged all of them. At once, he was in front of Uryu with his hand around the boy's neck. "For my first encounter with a Quincy, I must say… I'm not impressed." He held his other hand open. "Taking your heart won't even be a satisfying trophy."

"I told you… Not to underestimate me…!" The dozen arrows exploded into DiAnglez's back, causing him to release his grip on Uryu and stumble forward. Uryu quickly regained his composure and took the opening to explode a large arrow in the arrancar's face. The arrancar wheeled backwards, holding his face, but Uryu didn't let up. He fired off more arrows, and with each hit the arrancar lurched farther and farther back.

"Enough!" The arrancar finally yelled. His reiatsu boomed, causing Uryu to momentarily stagger. Uryu fired more arrows, but this time the arrancar swatted them aside with a hand. "You think your pitiful attacks can hurt me?" Uryu kept firing arrows, which only angered DiAnglez further. The arrancar charged forward again, bashing aside any oncoming arrows.

_Yes, take the bait, _Uryu continued to let arrows fly. _Keep coming. Closer. Closer. I've got one shot at this…!_ The arrancar was right in front of Uryu. He let out a roar of anger, giving Uryu the perfect opening.

There was a clash, and then a burst of light that sent dust flying. When it settled, the arrancar had his Zanpakutō unsheathed, guarding against Uryu's attack. Uryu had a cerulean blade of energy in both hands, and he was slamming the blade down on the arrancar's sword.

The bald arrancar smirked. "You almost got me, Mr. Ishida," he said as blood began to trickle from the gash on his forehead where the tip of Uryu's blade had sliced into. "Trying to trick me into a rage so that I wouldn't block your special arrow. Or sword. What is that, exactly?"

"_Seele Schneider_. It would have been stronger had I used it as an arrow, but I needed to be sure I wouldn't miss."

"And to think you almost succeeded. Although," the arrancar knocked Uryu back and held his sword out in front of him, "you did make me draw my sword. That is a commendable feat, especially for a human." The air around the arrancar began to swirl, and his reiatsu began to rise steadily. "For that, I will honor you with my released form." Uryu tried to let loose an arrow, but it was already too late. "_Weave, Aracnofobia!_"

A burst of yellow energy erupted skyward, and dust flew all around. Uryu shielded his eyes with a hand, and in that moment of blindness a large object slammed into him and knocked him back a ways. Slowly getting to his feet, he saw that from the dust cloud a long white appendage was sticking out. Soon, the appendage was joined by another, and then another, and another, until Uryu could count eight long white bone-like legs. At the center of these was a large white abdomen that was raised at least eight feet in the air by the legs. On top of the abdomen was a large tuft of black fur, and from this protruded the torso of the arrancar. The arrancar's piercings were gone now, and instead he had a large helmet that covered the top of his head, leaving only his mouth visible. Lining the helmet were at least a dozen tennis ball-sized black eyes that were all gazing at Uryu. The arrancar now wore an unbuttoned white skin-tight jacket with matching black fur around the collar and cuffs. On each wrist, he had sharp bone-like knives, and his three-fingered hands had long black nails. His spidery steps sounded like rainfall on the concrete as he scuttled closer to his opponent. When he grinned, he revealed large fangs in the corners of his mouth. "How do you like my released form, Mr. Ishida?" his voice sounded distorted and more mocking than before.

"…name…" Uryu mumbled.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

"…Your name. It's DiAnglez Spenzir, right?" Uryu stood tall, drawing his bow back again. "I want to make sure I know the name of my opponent before I kill him."

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Hi guys! Haven't updated in a while, I know. But I still plan to finish up this story within the next 3 weeks so that I can get started on my new Bleach fanfiction. Hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Comments are greatly appreciated!


	11. Chapter 11: Uryu vs DiAnglez (Part II)

Uryu let a large arrow fly. The arrancar laughed. "Kill me, will you?" Just before the arrow impacted his face, the spider arrancar opened his jaws wide. He chomped into the cerulean bolt, and the explosion it emitted engulfed his entire upper body. When the dust cleared, the arrancar stood grinning. "You're going to have to do a lot better than that, Mr. Ishida!" The arrancar scuttled forward, moving stunningly quickly for a creature that size. It smashed a pointed leg on Uryu's position, but the boy dodged out of the way. The leg impaled the concrete with ease, leaving a gaping hole the size of a basketball. Uryu darted behind his opponent, drawing his bow again. Before he could get a shot off, however, one of the spider's back legs whipped him in the chest and sent him flying backwards. Uryu hit the ground hard, but was able to roll back onto his feet quickly enough. Looking up, he could see the arrancar charging a yellow ball of energy in front of its mouth. "Adiós."

DiAnglez began rapidly firing off Cero blasts like a machine gun. Uryu moved forward just in time to avoid being hit by the energy barrage. Running down the street at full speed, he could hear the arrancar's beams blasting the ground just inches from his body, could smell the burning pavement, could feel the small chunks of concrete bounce off him. He darted down an alleyway, but took a hit to the shoulder before he was out of range. "Shit!" He rolled into the momentary haven the alley provided him, gripping his injured shoulder. The top layer of skin on his shoulder had been burned off, and blood was beginning to stain his white Quincy uniform. Gripping his shoulder, Uryu moved through the alleyway, sticking to the shadows as much as he could. The clouds overhead were growing thicker and darker as time passed.

Uryu darted out of the alley, and was immediately greeted by the arrancar moving in front of him with Sonído. DiAnglez grinned. "Where are you running to, little bug?" he hissed, his distorted voice ringing in Uryu's ears. Uryu went to draw his bow, but the arrancar grabbed his arm and lifted him into the air. "Sit still." The spider's wrist blade pierced into Uryu just underneath the ribcage. He cried out in pain, and the arrancar snickered.

Uryu was thrown through a nearby window into a small convenient store, and crashed through a shelf of candy bars. Uryu tried to get up, but he couldn't seem to get his body to move. His muscles were tightening up, and he was losing feeling throughout his body. "What's…happening…?" he called out rigidly.

"You're feeling the effects of my poison," the arrancar answered. Uryu could hear the arrancar's voice, but he was lying face down on the ground so he couldn't tell if the spider was in the room with him or not. "Or, I guess, you're not feeling much of anything at all anymore…"

After a moment, Uryu slowly began to get to his feet. "Did you forget? I can move my body using reishi threads. It doesn't matter if you break my bones or paralyze me…" Uryu stepped out of the convenience store, and immediately his eyes went wide. The entirety of the area was covered in silky white webbing. It covered the buildings, the street, the cars, the light posts, and arched up overhead so that Uryu was trapped inside a relatively small dome.

"Oh yes, I remembered," the spider yelled down at Uryu. Looking up, the Quincy saw the arrancar standing on the side of a building just as if it was the ground. "I was just trying to buy time." Uryu fired an arrow at the arrancar. The arrancar dodged out of the way long before the arrow came close to him, so Uryu stopped the arrow mid-flight and then redirected it at the dome overhead. It didn't break through completely, but it did tear the web up a bit. However, the web immediately began mending after being damaged. "My web is self-repairing, Mr. Ishida," DiAnglez was now behind Uryu, standing no more than five feet away. The boy reeled back and drew his bow. "You won't be able to open a hole up long enough to escape."

Uryu's body was trembling all over. He was controlling everything with his threads, but he couldn't feel any of his limbs and he was slowly becoming more and more tired. _I'm losing too much blood already… _He thought. He needed to wrap up this battle quickly. "I'm not planning on running away, Mr. Spenzir," Uryu said with a quivering smile. "I still have to kill you, remember?"

The arrancar did not seem amused this time. "I'm not sure if you've noticed yet, but my web trap shuts out all outside interference. I bet you can't feel any of your comrades' reiatsu anymore." Uryu _hadn't _notice, but now that he tried to concentrate, he realized that the arrancar spoke the truth. The only reiatsu he could feel were his own and DiAnglez's, but when he tried to feel for the others it was like they weren't there at all. "I am still aware of the outside activities, and I've just sensed that Mr. Sado has successfully eliminated one of my comrades. However, it seems that he lost his life doing so."

"…You're lying." Uryu growled.

The arrancar chuckled humorlessly. "Regardless, this means that we are down a man. And I am aware that my other comrade is fighting someone stronger than Mr. Sado, and this comrade is weaker than the one who was already eliminated."

Uryu was silent for a moment. "Why are you telling me all this?"

"Because it means I need to end this fight now so that I can ensure Lord Mu's plan succeeds."

"Lord Mu?" Uryu had not heard this name before. "So is this the man you're working for?" The arrancar remained silent. "Is he the captain who showed up with you all?"

"I do not serve that man." The arrancar stated bluntly.

"Then I must assume we haven't met this Lord Mu yet. Am I correct?" The arrancar said nothing. "I'll take that as a yes. One more question: Is this 'Lord Mu' the one who kidnapped Mr. Urahara?"

"I owe you no answers," DiAnglez said, his hands flexing. "Enough talk." The arrancar opened his mouth, and a yellow ball of energy began to charge. Uryu fired off a large arrow at the ball, and it exploded. Uryu was knocked backwards a ways, and when he was finally able to get to his feet again the spider was gone. Uryu moved cautiously but quickly down the road, his bow drawn and at the ready. He could feel the spider's powerful reiatsu, but it felt as though it was all around him so it was impossible to pinpoint a location. A laugh echoed off the buildings. "Now it's my turn to hide, little bug," the voice came from all around. Uryu remained vigilant, trying to avoid being hit in a blind spot. "As long as some part of your body is touching my web, I can follow your exact movements without even looking at you. And then I can strike where your guard is weakest…!"

A flurry of Cero blasts came bursting from the sky. Uryu rolled out of the blast radius and fired of a few dozen arrows back, but they all were heading for a target that wasn't there. _This isn't good, _Uryu thought to himself. _I can't shoot something I can't see! _Another barrage of Ceros fired on Uryu's position. He jumped back, and then the arrancar was right there in front of him. DiAnglez whipped the boy with two of his legs, and Uryu was sent flying. He smashed through a wall, then through another, and another, and then he was rolling on the ground until he hit another wall and stopped. It took him longer to get up this time. _My Ransōtengai's starting to waver… I'm more exhausted than I thought. _Uryu ran down an alley nearby. He wanted to try to stay out of sight for just a moment, just to gather his thoughts…

The arrancar appeared before him, his expression emotionless. Uryu went to draw his bow, but his hand was hit by something and it knocked him back. Looking at his arm, he saw that it was now covered with the white web. "Over here, Mr. Ishida." Uryu looked up to see the spider's legs coming his way again. He raised his bow as a shield, and although it softened the actual blow it didn't stop him from being smashed through the wall behind him. Uryu coughed up blood as he staggered to his feet again. The arrancar was moving towards him slowly, his hands flexing as he walked. "You've hit your limit, it seems," the distorted voice rasped. "I guess it's time for our little game to come to an end."

Uryu's eyes slanted. He tore the webbing off his arm and drew his bow again. "Agreed." He fired off a large barrage of arrows, and the arrancar countered with his Cero. There was a blast of light, and in the aftermath Uryu darted from the building and back out onto the streets. He ran down and alleyway, then darted up the sides of the surrounding buildings until he was on the rooftops.

"It doesn't matter where you run to," DiAnglez called. "I know where you are."

Uryu chuckled. "You'll have to catch me, though!" He darted from the roof to another, and then to another, moving as quickly as his body would allow. _I've got one chance left to end this… _

"You're rather quick, little bug," the spider shouted. Uryu knew that he wasn't far behind. "But it seems that running is your only true talent. Uryu touched down on a large rooftop and moved to jump again, but his leg was hit with a blast of web and he fell. "No more." DiAnglez growled. He fired off dozens of web shots from his mouth until the rooftop was covered by a box of silk.

Uryu stood up slowly, drawing his bow back. He fired one arrow, then another, and then two more after that. The arrows missed the arrancar by a large margin, and only managed to pierce each of the corners of the roof. Uryu fell to his knees, dizzy and out of breath. "Damn it…"

The arrancar let out a shrill laugh. "How sad… You can't even fire an arrow straight anymore…" He scuttled slowly towards Uryu, his wrist blades poised to strike. Uryu quickly got up and fired an arrow at the arrancar. It pierced its target and lodged itself in the spider's chest. The spider hissed in pain and lashed out at Uryu, sending him crashing into one of the corners of the rooftop. "Bastard… I was going to give you a quick death, but now I'm going to drag it out," the arrancar fumed. "I'm going to peel off your skin down to the bone, and then I'm going to pull out each bone one by one, and then once you're just a sack of skin left then _maybe_ I will grant you freedom from this earth!"

Uryu chuckled. "It won't come to that, I'm afraid," he said, pulling out a small tube from his coat. "This fight is over."

"What the hell are you talking about? What is that?"

"This… Is _Gintō_," the Quincy boy said. "Using these in conjunction with the Seele Schneider I fired around the rooftop, I can create a massive detonation. You just made things easier by sealing us in this web arena."

The arrancar laughed, but there was a touch of fear in his voice. "You can't do anything like that. Your reiatsu's much too low at this point!"

"Gintō is basically liquefied reiryoku. When I pour this onto the Seele Schneider, it will connect each one together and trigger an explosion within the borders. I could have just shot the corners of the rooftop, but by shooting your body as well I've effectively made you one of the conduits of energy, thus increasing the damage that will be inflicted upon your body. In short: After this attack, there won't be anything left of you."

DiAnglez took a step back. "B-but if you detonate that in here, you'll be caught in the explosion as well! You'll die, you fool!"

Uryu scoffed. "Don't treat me like an idiot. I'm aware of all of that," The Quincy sighed. "Even so, I have to do this. I can't let you harm the others." Uryu closed his eyes.

DiAnglez Spenzir stood, body shaking. "I won't lose… Not to you… Lord Mu must succeed!" He lunged forward, mouth agape and wrist blades ready to plunge. Uryu let his Ransōtengai fade, and the silver tube fell from his hand. _Sorry, Ichigo, _Uryu thought to himself, a small smile creeping onto his face. _You won't be able to save everyone today…_

The rooftop was consumed by the sapphire detonation, and the silky web dome sparkled in the light.

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Hi everyone, BlackShenlong here! Finally, the epic conclusion to the battle between Quincy and arrancar is here. Sorry if there are spelling and/or grammar errors. It's like 6 in the morning and I just can't read over this... Anyway, thanks for reading!


	12. Chapter 12: Rukia vs Tinlinn (Part I)

Rukia lunged forward, her sword poised to skewer. Her opponent, the little purple-haired arrancar, sidestepped the attack, but still got nicked on the cheek. Touching a sleeved hand to her face, Tinlinn Georgicks frowned. "Owie," she shrieked, tears welling up in her eyes. "That hurt, you meanie!"

Rukia blushed, but then quickly changed her face to a scowl. "Be serious!" she shouted, swinging her sword at the arrancar again. They had been at it for some time now, and Rukia was beginning to lose her patience. The arrancar she was facing was small, childish, and rather weak as far as Rukia was concerned. She had been dodging Rukia's blows, _barely_, but when it came to attacking or blocking Rukia was easily able to overwhelm her and strike back.

The arrancar ducked another attack, and then quickly closed the gap between her and Rukia. "You're wide open, you retard!" she shouted with glee.

Rukia put up a hand. "Hado #31: Shakkahō!" A red blast of energy sent the small arrancar crashing to the ground. Rukia landed nearby, her sword at her side. "Just give up," she called with a huff. "If this is the best you can do, then I can tell you for a fact that there's no way you can beat me."

The arrancar jumped to her feet. Her clothes were singed, and she was covered in dust and dirt, but she looked relatively unharmed. Even so, she was out of breath and slightly wobbly on her feet. "You… You're no fun… You ugly lesbian!" she screamed, flailing her arms in the air.

"L-Lesbian?!" Rukia exclaimed, blushing all over. "Wh-why would you… How dare-!" The arrancar rushed forward and swung her sword down at the Shinigami. Rukia dodged the blade, and then smashed Tinlinn in the head with the pommel of her Zanpakutō. "Too slow," she said, spinning her sword in both hands. The small arrancar quickly recovered from the strike and began thrusting her blade in rapid succession. Rukia's spinning sword acted as a shield that deflected each jab away. "Your attacks don't have enough power behind them to break my guard." The Shinigami stepped past another lunge, and then kicked the small arrancar lightly in the back. Tinlinn stumbled, and then fell on her face.

"…Sh-shit-eater…" The small arrancar slowly got to her feet and turned to face her opponent. "You're the meanest bitch I've ever met!"

"And you're by far the foulest little girl I've had the misfortune to listen to…" Rukia said with a sigh. "Didn't anyone teach you basic courtesies?"

"Screw your courtesies, you flat-chested lesbian!" the little girl turned around and began smacking her butt at Rukia, who had gone beet-red again. "Go to hell! Go to hell!"

"Why you…!" Rukia's sword smashed into the earth with such force that the concrete ground around the two crumbled to pieces and flew into the air. Tinlinn jumped out of harm's way, screaming as she did so.

The small arrancar waved her hands in front of her. "H-hey now, let's all just relax," she said sweetly, sweat dripping from her face. "No need to go and kill anyone, r-right?"

Rukia held her sword out in front of her. "Raise your sword, arrancar. No more games."

Tinlinn lowered her gaze, and for a moment, she looked like she might cry. A grin stretched across her face. "But we haven't even begun the games yet," she said, raising her sword over her head. Her long sleeve fell back, and now Rukia could see that the sword had an indigo hilt and a star-shaped guard. "_Grant my wish… Estrella Fugaz!_"

There was a burst of smoke and light, and then a strong gust of wind shot out in all directions. Rukia covered her face with an arm, but she still wasn't able to block out all the smoke. It got caught in her lungs and she coughed.

When the smoke cleared, Tinlinn Georgicks stood looking more or less the same as before but with a few aesthetic changes. Her headdress had changed from a biretta to that of a mitre with elaborate gold and jewel adornments. Her too-long-for-her-small-body-robes were now trimmed with golden thread, and her sword had transformed into a small white wooden staff. The staff was gnarled and bent, and at the top of it was the broken star that had previously adorned her biretta. The star now had a large grey gem in the center of it. She waved the staff over her head with both hands, and then held it out to her side. "My resurrección," she said with a giggle. "Isn't it super cool?"

Rukia did not reply. She looked the girl up and down. _Nothing's really changed, _she thought to herself. She slowly began circling around the arrancar, her sword poised to attack. _Her reiatsu is exactly the same as it was before… Does that staff possess any new abilities?_ Rukia didn't wait to find out. She lunged at the arrancar and swung her sword upwards. Tinlinn held her staff in both hands as she blocked the blow, but the force still sent her quickly closed the gap, and swung down hard on the girl. The purple-haired girl blocked the attack again, and once again the blow sent her flying backwards, this time towards the ground.

As Rukia flew at her target, the arrancar pointed the star-tip of her staff at the Shinigami. "Take this!" she screamed, and a purple jet of energy erupted forth. Rukia's eyes went wide; she didn't have time to dodge the attack. "Hado #33: Sōkatsui!" A surge of blue flames blasted from Rukia's palm and collided with the Cero. The two energies merged with each other and then dissipated it a dazzling explosion of light.

Tinlinn landed on the ground safely, searching the skies for Rukia. The air was still lit up from their blasts, and it was hard to make out anything. She did, however, see a large dome of energy over the sky. "Someone must have put up a barrier…" she thought to herself. Still looking through the skies, she notices something else—her breath. The air around her had gone cold, and her breath was coming out in small white puffs of steam. "What the hell…?"

Tinlinn dodged to the side as a thin white blast flew by. When she looked, she saw that it was a long stream of ice. Looking up in the air, she saw the Shinigami floating overhead, a snow-white sword in hand. "_Dance, Sode no Shirayuki,_" Rukia landed on the ground a few feet away from the arrancar. "Now we've both released our true powers," she said with a small smile. "Although, it seems your change wasn't much at all."

The purple-haired girl frowned. "Shorties like you don't know anything," she said with a huff.

"You're shorter than I am!" Rukia shot back.

The arrancar held out her staff. "Do you like games?" Tinlinn said, cocking her head to the side. "I have a really fun game we can play."

Rukia raised her sword. "I'm not sure now is the time for games,"

"No, really, it's a lot of fun," the arrancar said, smiling wide. It was an innocent smile; the smile of a child. "But we can only play if you agree to it."

"I don't think so," Rukia took a step forward.

"Wait, please!" The arrancar waved her staff in front of her. "If you win, my Zanpakutō will break and then you'll win the battle too!"

Rukia stopped. "…Explain."

The little girl smiled again. "It's like a wagering game. If you win my Zanpakutō breaks—"

"But if you win…"

"—but if I win then I get to open the _prize_!"

"Prize?" Rukia was becoming skeptical.

"It's a surprise-prize. A sur-prize! Get it?" the girl giggled loudly.

Rukia remained silent. Whatever this game was, the arrancar had to have the advantage. It only made sense, since she was offering it. Even so, Rukia _knew _that she was stronger, faster, and probably stronger than her opponent. Why shouldn't she be able to best her at a silly game? "What are the rules of this game?"

"So you accept?" the girl asked excitedly.

"I didn't say that. I asked what the rules were."

The girl frowned, but relented. "It's really simple, and reeeaaally fun: All you have to do is keep the ball from hitting the ground."

Rukia raised an eyebrow. "Ball?"

The little arrancar smiled. "I can't bring out the game until you agree to play, so I can't show you. But yes, there's a ball. Your goal will be to keep the ball in the air until time runs out, while my goal will be to hit the ball onto the ground before time runs out."

"And how much time is there?"

The girl held up a hand. "5 minutes. That's it."

_A simple children's game… _It all sounded easy enough. "…Very well. I'll play."

Tinlinn's eyes went wide. She began hopping up and down. "Yay! Yay! Someone's gonna play with me! Finally!" She skipped around on the ground. "No one eve plays with me! Yay, yay, yay! Maybe you're not such a bitchy lesbian after all!"

Rukia could feel herself beginning to blush. "Watch your tongue," she warned, gripping her Zanpakutō tight.

"Sorry, sorry," the little girl said with a nervous laugh. She ran over to Rukia and extended her staff. "Grab hold and say 'I accept.' It's the only way we can play, okay?"

Rukia cautiously extended a hand, and then she gripped the staff firmly. "I accept." She recited.

A purple circle of light extended outward from the two, and it encapsulated a fairly large section of the town. "This is our playing field, or the 'Zone of Activity'," The gem at the top of Tinlinn's staff began blinking yellow, and a yellow ball, no bigger than a soccer-ball, appeared overhead. It slowly drifted downward, until it was floating right above the staff. "Once the timer starts, the ball will fly into the air, but after that it will get all heavy and start falling," the girl explained. Rukia let go of the staff and took a step back. A large hourglass appeared in the sky. Tinlinn smiled. "3… 2… 1… Game on!"

The hourglass flipped over, and the ball shot up into the air at high speeds. Tinlinn followed it quickly, giggling madly as she swung her staff to and fro. She smashed the ball with her staff, and it went rocketing toward earth.

Rukia dove after it. _If I just catch it, then I can wait for time to run out that way! _She jumped into the air and grabbed the ball with her free hand. A searing, almost overwhelming pain shot through her arm immediately as the touched the ball and she recoiled quickly.

The arrancar laughed overhead. "You can't touch the ball with your body, that's cheating," she said in between giggles. "Use your sword, shithead!"

_You neglected to mention that rule before the start of the game…! _Rukia lunged for the ball again, and smacked it with the flat-side of her sword. It lobbed back up into the air, where Tinlinn was waiting. The arrancar popped the ball up in the air with the end of her staff, and then juggled the ball with her staff for a moment. Knocking it into the air again, she pointed her staff at Rukia and fired off a Cero. Rukia dodged the blast, but when she looked up again, she couldn't find Tinlinn or the ball. Scanning the field quickly, she saw Tinlinn was flying towards the ground right beside the ball. _She's guarding it,_ Rukia realized. Making use of her shunpo, Rukia moved in to where the ball was in no time. She swung for the ball, but the arrancar intercepted the attack.

"Are you having fun yet?" the little girl asked, a light-hearted grin on her face.

"I'll be happy once it's over," the Shinigami replied, knocking the girl back and moving after the ball. Smashing the ball back into the air, Rukia turned to the arrancar. She stabbed the air in front of her four times, leaving four white marks that made a half-circle in front of her. Holding her white Zanpakutō overhead, she took a battle stance. "_Tsugi no mai, Hakuren!_" a large wave of white ice jetted towards the arrancar, who had gone wide-eyed. She dodged to the side just in time, but her left arm got caught in the blast and was completely encased in the ice tube. Once the tube shattered, the small girl was left with a bleeding stump.

Tinlinn cried out. "You play dirty, you meanie! Fuck-faced meanie!"

Rukia ignored her, only focused on the ball. She looked up at the hourglass. It was a little more than half empty now. _Just a little bit longer… _Rukia was suddenly hit in the back by a strong force. She went tumbling downward, and crashed into a building nearby. Quickly getting up, she was able to dodge the next Cero blast that came her way. She leapt out a window on the other side of the building, and saw that the ball had almost reached the ground. Extending her sword out in front of her, she exclaimed, "_San no mai, Shirafune!_" Ice encased her blade as it extended forward to great lengths. She aimed her great sword underneath the ball, and swung upwards. The ball impacted with the sword and flew into the air, and Rukia's ice extension shattered. Whirling around, she was able to catch the arrancar's staff with her sword before it smashed into the side of her face.

"This is a really exciting game!" Tinlinn exclaimed, still beaming despite being short one arm. "You've gotta be having fun, just admit it!"

"Not really, no," Rukia replied, throwing the arrancar off her.

Tinlinn frowned. "I guess you'd rather be fantasizing about kissing girls, huh?"

Rukia swung at Tinlinn. "That's enough of your crudeness!" The two of them exchanged blows until Tinlinn finally got the upper hand and send Rukia crashing to the ground.

When Rukia got up, Tinlinn was right above her. "I can be fast, too!" she cried, staff raised overhead.

Rukia spun her Zanpakuto in her hands until it was pointing downward, eyes slanted at the arrancar. Just as Tinlinn was about to strike, Rukia did so first. She slashed past the arrancar, and a circle formed around Tinlinn on the ground. "It's over," Rukia said, sheathing her sword. "_Some no mai, Tsukishiro!_" A large pillar of ice rose into the air, completely encasing the purple-haired arrancar.

As Rukia walked away from her opponent, she heard a loud buzzing sound. Turning, she saw that the ball had hit the ground, and underneath it a small circle was flashing red. She looked up at the sky, and saw that a few grains of sand were still left in the top of the hourglass. Suddenly, the hourglass vanished completely, and letters flashed in the sky instead. **WINNER: TINLINN GEORGICKS. PRIZE ACTIVATED. **Rukia felt a tremendous surge of energy, and she slowly turned to look at the pillar of ice. The girl inside was glowing brightly, and the ice pillar was beginning to crack all over. Rukia barely had time to draw her sword again before a massive wave of ice and energy knocked her backwards.

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Hey guys. Hope you liked this chapter. Part II will be coming very soon! Comments are greatly appreciated, so keep them coming!

P.S. Last time I updated, I forgot to translate what DiAnglez's sword meant. It was pretty obvious, since it was a cognate, but it meant "Arachnophobia". I think that was the only translation necessary... Thanks for reading!


	13. Chapter 13: Rukia vs Tinlinn (Part II)

Rukia slowly got to her feet and surveyed the situation. Dust was floating around everywhere, which made it harder to see. Even so, the damage caused by the explosion was clearly visible. The concrete was riddled with deep jagged cracks that stretched down many blocks. Many of the nearby buildings' windows had blown out, and some of the buildings closer to the explosion had caved in or collapsed altogether. Cars had been smashed and turned over, and streetlights had been torn from the ground and thrown down the street or into buildings. Rukia was becoming aware of the fact that she had been flung quite far away from where the detonation happened. The dust was especially thick in the air around ground zero, but Rukia could make out a tall silhouette moving closer. Rukia held her sword out before her, preparing for the worst. But what happened next was something she never would have expected.

For one moment, it felt as though the air stood completely still. And then in the next, it felt as though Rukia was standing in the middle of a tornado. The dust in the air was gone completely in an instant, and the hidden figure could now be seen clearly. A tall, beautiful young woman stepped out of a large crater that had been masked by the dust. She had long, curly purple hair that hung down to the middle of her back and bangs that draped over her left eye. Her voluptuous figure was barely covered by white robes with golden-silk trimmings, and on her head was a gold-and-jewel-encrusted mitre. Her Hollow hole sat above her cleavage, and around her bellybutton there was a large purple star tattoo. In her hand was a long, white-marble rod with a flawless star adorning the top. The star had a large gem at the center of it that glowed with a bright light. Floating behind the woman was a large golden halo with five prongs extending from the top, sides and bottom. The woman smiled. Her mouth moved as though she was speaking, but Rukia could hear nothing over the roaring of the wind. The Shinigami fell to one knee as the strong gusts crushed down on her. Rukia felt as though she might be torn to pieces, but the beautiful woman appeared oblivious. She raised an eyebrow at Rukia, and then nodded. The winds stopped abruptly. The woman smiled again. "Thank you for helping me to unlock my _Wish-Fulfillment Mode_," her voice had a melody to it that enhanced her beauty even further. "I've never actually used this form before. No one will ever play the game with me."

Panting, Rukia got to her feet. "So that storm just now… That was you?"

Tinlinn Georgicks gave Rukia a quizzical look. "Storm? There was no storm. That must have been my reiatsu you were feeling," Rukia's eyes went wide. The arrancar smiled again. "It's rather impressive, isn't it? But don't worry. That was my full power I was exerting just now. It doesn't get any better than that. I just wanted to see how far I could go!"

_That was more than enough… _Rukia thought bitterly. In an instant this enemy had gone from being almost a joke to being far out of the Shinigami's league. Looking down at her sword, Rukia could see that she was shaking. She shook her head and stood firm, but even so the fear was still there. _The power I just felt… Could Ichigo even stand up to this monster?_

The arrancar flipped the rod in the air. The formerly gnarled wood staff was now an expertly-crafted wand no more than two feet in length. Tinlinn raised the wand over her head, and the gem in the center shone brightly. "Let's see just what I can do now, shall we?" She waved the wand in front of her, and the air in front of Rukia exploded with a roar. Buildings nearby were decimated, and Rukia was sent soaring backwards through the air. The Shinigami righted herself in the air and found the arrancar floating not three yards away. "I think I'll call that attack _Estrella del Fuego_," Tinlinn said with a giggle. "I can't believe I have this much power now! And this body," she rubbed a hand down her thigh and then brought it up to her chest. "I bet it turns you on, huh?"

"_Ye lord…_"Rukia sheathed her sword. "_Mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man…_"

"What are you doing?" Tinlinn asked, raising an eyebrow. "Are you trying to seduce me with poetry?"

"…_Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws,_" Rukia raised her right hand in front of her and gripped her wrist with her left. "Hado #33: Sōkatsui!"

A large blast of blue fire shot forth from the Shinigami's palm. The arrancar smiled and raised a hand. Just before the blast was about to hit, Tinlinn backhanded it and sent it careening off into the sky. It exploded like a firework miles away from the two. The arrancar winced and shook her hand. "That stung a little bit," she said.

Rukia's hands slowly fell to her sides. _Before, that spell had been able to cancel out her Cero. But now…_

"So does saying that little poem before the spell make it stronger or weaker? I couldn't tell," the arrancar laughed. She pointed her rod at Rukia. "Do you want to see if my Cero's gotten any stronger?"

Rukia drew her sword again and swung at her opponent. Tinlinn grabbed the sword with her free hand and threw Rukia towards the ground. Before Rukia crashed, she saw the arrancar, who seemed to have teleported to the ground below, touch the ground with a hand. The area lit up, and a large purple star appeared on the ground. Rukia was able to land on her feet when she hit the earth, but when she did the star began to glow brightly. The arrancar giggled. "I call this one _Estrella de La Trampa_!"

The ground below exploded in a burst of violet light, and Rukia was sent flying. She crashed into a tall office building, smashed through a few desks and finally stopped once she hit a wall of filing cabinets. Rukia lay still in the wreckage, her entire body sore. Blood trickled from her mouth and nose, and her clothing was burnt and torn. _This is my fault… I could have finished her, but instead I got tricked into playing that stupid game… I deserve all this… _

There was a slicing sound overhead, and then the roof of the building slowly slid off and fell to the ground below. Tinlinn stood in the sky, wand raised in the air. "I haven't tried out all my new powers yet," the arrancar said with a wink, "so don't die yet, 'kay?" She swung her rod down, and the building was showered with dozens of purple balls of fire. The comets smashed through the building as though it were made of paper, and by the time the attack was over all that was left was a smoldering pile of rubble. Tinlinn smiled. "I'm glad you dodged. I didn't want our fun to be over yet." The arrancar flipped the wand in her hand. "I think I'll call that attack… _Iluvia Cósmica_? Does that sound too cheesy?"

Rukia was crouched underneath a turned-over van, trying to catch her breath. The arrancar's attack had been strong, but relatively slow, so Rukia had been able to get out of the building without taking any damage. She chewed on her lip, trying to figure out what to do. _This arrancar… She's much stronger than I am. But that doesn't mean I can't win… I have to take advantage of her confidence somehow… _Rukia stood up, her released Zanpakutō in her hands. _I can't leave this enemy undefeated… Ichigo can't do everything on his own!_

The arrancar frowned, tapping her foot impatiently on the air. "Heeeeey," she called down to the Shinigami, "come on, your input matters to me. _lluvia Cósmica_? Yes or no?"

Rukia scoffed. "It's too cheesy."

Tinlinn pushed out her lip. "You're just mad because I have big boobs now and you don't," She grabbed her chest and shook. "Well too bad for you! You ugly lesbian bitch!" Rukia sprung into the air, sword poised to strike. She slashed her sword at the arrancar, who merely blocked the blow with a hand. Rukia kept up her attack, throwing swift slashes and jabs at her opponent. The arrancar laughed, not dodging any of the attacks but instead blocking the strikes with a single hand. "My Hierro is unbreakable now," the woman said, swatting Rukia's sword away and then waving her wand upwards. Rukia felt as though a giant had grabbed her and thrown her into the sky as she went soaring upward. The arrancar appeared behind the Shinigami, pointing her wand. A small purple ball of energy was forming at the tip, and it was steadily growing bigger. "Now about that Cero…"

Rukia sheathed her sword and held out her hands. "Bakudō # 4: Hainawa!" A crackling yellow rope of energy extended forth, wrapping itself around the arrancar's arms and torso.

The Cero continued to grow bigger, and the arrancar frowned. "What's this now, some kind of joke?" Tinlinn scoffed. "You'll have to do better than that to stop me."

Rukia smiled. "_Carriage of thunder, bridge of a spinning wheel. With light, divide this into six!_" The Shinigami took one hand off the rope and pointed a finger, which began to glow yellow. "Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō!" The yellow ropes around the arrancar began forming into six wide bands of light, which then slammed into the arrancar's midsection.

The arrancar's Cero dissipated almost immediately, and the woman looked surprised. "What is this…?"

Rukia stabbed the air in front of her to form a semicircle, and then took her battle stance. "Tsugi no mai, Hakuren!" The wave of ice washed over the arrancar in a spectacular surge of white. For a moment, it seemed as though the arrancar had been completely consumed by the attack, but then the ice began to fall away to reveal the arrancar standing tall, a large purple star glowing in front of her.

"_Estrella Escudo_…" the arrancar said with a sigh. "That was a close one. You almost had me!" The arrancar waved her wand again, and Rukia jumped backwards… But nothing happened. Tinlinn waved her wand again, and still nothing happened. Looking at the wand, she could see that ice covered most of it, and she huffed. "Dammit…"

_Her wand…! _Rukia realized. _That's the source of her power. Without that, she has nothing! _To test her theory, Rukia rushed towards the arrancar and slashed at the rod. Tinlinn pulled away from the Shinigami and swung a fist. Rukia ducked the punch and slashed the arrancar across the chest. Blood gushed out, and the arrancar screamed.

"You _fucking_ bitch," she hissed. She smashed the ice off her wand with her other hand. The gem in the center of the star was cracked slightly, but it still glowed bright. "How dare you scar my new sexy body!" She waved her wand at Rukia. "_Estrella del Fuego!_" The air around Rukia erupted in flames, and Rukia was scorched and sent flying towards the ground.

"Bakudō # 4: Hainawa!" The energy rope extended outward and tangled around Tinlinn. Rukia pulled, and the arrancar got dragged down with the Shinigami. They both crashed into the ground, and Rukia was able to get to her feet first. She ran towards the arrancar, spinning her Zanpakutō in her hands. "Some no mai, Tsuki—" Rukia stopped in midsentence. Looking down slowly, she saw that Tinlinn's hand was buried up to the wrist in her stomach. She fell to her knees.

The arrancar gave an evil smile. "Did you really think you still stood a chance?" Rukia weakly grabbed at the arrancar's wrist. Tinlinn laughed and twisted her hand around. Rukia cried out in pain, which only made the arrancar laugh harder. _Not… Yet…_ Rukia grabbed the wand in the arrancar's hand. "What the hell are you doing?!" she shrieked. She dug her arm deeper inside Rukia. Rukia could feel herself fading, but she didn't give in. She lifted her sword and smashed the rod with it. Part of the star chipped, and the gem cracked a bit more. "Stop it, you bitch!" The arrancar tried to tear the wand from Rukia, but the Shinigami held strong. _I can't die… Just yet…! _Rukia smashed the rod again, and again, and again. Each time it broke a little more, and each time the arrancar became more panicked. As Rukia raised her sword again, the arrancar raised her reiatsu to its max. Rukia could feel the immense torrent of the arrancar's power tearing at her own body. Her sword quivered in her hand, and her vision started going black. "I'm going to kill you, do you hear me?! You're going to die here!" The arrancar raised the wand high over her head, and it began to shine the brightest it ever had.

Rukia pointed her sword at the rod. "San… no… mai… Shirafune!" The icy extension of the blade pierced through the wand's gem. The broken gem blinked for a moment, and then it went grey. The star and gem crumpled to dust, and the marble handle fell to the ground uselessly. The arrancar's reiatsu immediately vanished, and the air was still once more.

The arrancar looked at Rukia, horrified. "What… What have you done…?" she stammered, her eyes wide as the moon. She looked close to tears. "M-my power… All my power…"

Rukia grabbed the arrancar's wrist and pulled her hand from Rukia's stomach. As she did this, she also stuck her sword deep inside the arrancar's chest. "_Hakushi_." Ice slowly branched outward from the Zanpakutō, covering Tinlinn in a white sheet until her entire body was a frozen sculpture. Rukia pulled her sword out of the arrancar, and it returned to its sealed form. As she sheathed her blade she tried to stand, but found that her legs would not allow it. Remaining on her knees, she took a deep breath as a strange cold washed over her. She closed her eyes and let the cold take her away.

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Hi guys! Hope you enjoyed Rukia's battle. I enjoyed writing these two chapters the most. Anyway, here are some translations:

_Estrella del Fuego_: Star Fire

_Estrella de La Trampa_: Star Trap

_Iluvia Cósmica_: Cosmic Rain

_Estrella Escudo_: Star Shield

_Hakushi_: White Death

Thanks again for reading. Comments are always/greatly appreciated. This story's coming close to its finale, so stay tuned!


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